Industry News, Industry Features - Page 4 of 25

A boost for controlled licensing

The video game industry is in the middle of, arguably, its most unstable period — the landscape is evolving almost too quickly to track. Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft are currently sticking to the course as constants, in general maintaining well-worn business practices while attempting to adjust to new challenges...

A bid for freedom from its parent company in France

While filing for bankruptcy in the U.S. is typically an act taken by companies in significant financial trouble, it's being adopted as an escape mechanism by the U.S. divisions of Atari. Atari Inc, Atari Interactive Inc, Humongous Inc and California US Holdings Inc have all collectively filed in...

Are Skylanders and Disney Infinity pulling a Capcom, with toys?

Yesterday, before a maelstrom of date reveals and other news, the pricing emerged for Disney Infinity, which put parents and their bank managers on alert. It also instantly raised comparisons with the Skylanders series, now two games old, which despite differences in approach to the...

No more Mario Kart Wii for Jerry Lambert

Last year we reported the peculiar news that Sony was taking 'Kevin Butler' actor Jerry Lambert to court over an appearance in a Bridgestone advert in which he was part of a Wii promotion. The Kevin Butler character was, for a significant period, the figurehead of Sony's advertising for PlayStation 3 and...

Tough times ahead?

The past twelve months have shown just how volatile the current market is for retailers. With the global recession taking its toll, several high street businesses are finding it difficult to compete. This week alone saw both HMV and Blockbuster slip into administration in the UK, putting thousands of jobs at risk. Video game...

$340 million being invested in a new development facility

While many of us focus exclusively on our latest Nintendo consoles and what games are coming up, it's easy to forget that Nintendo's a rather large corporation that's always evolving and seeking a business edge. While it may crush any perceptions that Nintendo's facilities are populated by...

Convincing sceptics is one

Recent sales figures and industry conversations have given us a fair old glut of analytical articles focused on Wii U in recent days. For a system that's barely a couple of months old, there's been a temptation in some quarters to either predict doom and a major loss of market share, or to put faith in Nintendo's...

Believes Sony and Microsoft successors are due this year

Last week saw the annual tech hoopla of Consumer Electronics Association (CES) 2013, with a number of gadgets such as the Nvidia Project Shield handheld unveiled. Although not all major technology companies were in attendance, it was an opportunity for various contacts to be made and for...

"The doors are wide open for other small studios"

Best known for its pinball titles — though it has dabbled in other genres — Zen Studios earned a starring role in the final Nintendo Direct broadcasts of last year when Zen Pinball 2 was announced for the Wii U eShop. Initially expected in December, it's been pushed back from that original...

"We aim to leave a smile on our customer's faces"

With a New Year and Nintendo's upcoming announcement of its Q3 financial results, Satoru Iwata and his team have plenty to think about. 2013 will be an important year to continue momentum on 3DS with big releases, and more importantly to grow the Wii U audience as much as possible. Speaking to...

Ideals remain due to "very humbling" support from fans

Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward is one of the most unique experiences currently available on 3DS, serving a role well fulfilled by its predecessor — 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors — on DS. Part of its appeal, as shared by many of its strongest advocates, is its strength of...

Higher revenues than Wii launch, 3DS has over 1.25 million sales in Holiday period

Nintendo of America has issued a series of facts and figures for its Holiday period performance in the U.S., following publication of the latest NPD figures that cover 25th November to 29th December. There were some solid results and, perhaps most importantly, decent...

Predicts that Wii U will exceed 50 million sales by year-end 2016

With the continually evolving gaming industry, and a dizzying range of devices and platforms beyond the conventional big three of Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, there are plenty of people who wonder whether the era of the dedicated game console is coming to a gradual end. Time will...

A subtle but important evolution

The past couple of weeks have brought a notable landmark for the 3DS eShop, even if it hasn't necessarily caused internet-shaking headlines or attracted a great deal of attention. Unchained Blades, an RPG that would typically be found in specialist gaming stores or online retailers, if you're lucky, was released by...

Covers a large range of trading territories

As another year settles in snippets of information are starting to reveal the Holiday fortunes of Wii U, since its North American arrival on 18th November and its subsequent releases in Europe, Japan and elsewhere. NPD figures should paint a clearer picture for the US later this week, while Nintendo's own...

The DS era is left behind

The biggest release on DS in 2012, and surely the runaway winner of practically every Game of the Year award specifically tailored for the older handheld, were the Pokémon Black & White 2 titles, tied together for the purposes of simplicity. Yet its announcement and release on the platform surprised a number of...

From Wii to the Tegra mobile gaming platform

Yesterday we reported on Nvidia's announcement of Project Shield, a device that incorporates a conventional home console controller with a high-quality retina display touchscreen, impressive all-round specs and the ability to stream PC games without the need for a meaty broadband connection. Whether it'll...

It keeps on rolling

While worldwide performance and firm figures are either hard to find or occasionally shown to be modest, one thing is certain — the 3DS is emerging as a major sales success in Japan. Perhaps due to the power of franchises — Animal Crossing: New Leaf has been a monster hit — the handheld's performance is such that it's...

Key franchises to be sold to the highest bidder

The future of THQ largely hangs in the balance as the company struggles to find the cash to stay afloat. Back in December the publisher filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy handing over its assets to investment firm Clearlake Capital, which is now looking for a prospective buyer. It has been confirmed...