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Stargate Worlds, Stargate Resistance Developer Goes Bankrupt
Following several close calls, Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment’s coffers finally ran dry, sending the troubled firm to Maricopa County Court to declare bankruptcy.
Read the story here.
When Play Means Pay: Video Game Jobs On The Rise
Finding a job in the video game industry is a dream come true for many people who grew up playing games on computers and consoles. And the field is swiftly expanding as people turn to mobile devices like the iPhone and social networking sites like Facebook for entertainment.
Read the story here and discuss it in the forum.
Board Game Born of Irish Economic Woes
If there is one thing we Irish are good at — no, not good at, absolutely genius at — it is turning our great misfortunes into great art. In fact, if you only glance backwards at history you will notice that the greater the misfortunes, the greater the art they have engendered.
Ruadhan Mac Eoin is a friend of mine (another thing we Irish are great at is helping our friends) who has invented a board game called Namarama which, as the name suggests, is based on the current situation.
Read the story here and discuss it in the forum.
Free Games Bring Big Profits
Luke Hsieh, an analyst at the government-run Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute, forecasts revenue of NT$11.6 billion (US$351.5 million) for 2009 for Taiwan’s online game industry. Income from free-to-play games has already surpassed annual revenue earned in Taiwan by “shrink-wrapped” and console games, which in 2009 had sales of NT$10.8 billion (US$327.3 million)—NT$7.3 billion (US$221.2 million) for hardware and NT$3.5 billion (US$106.1 million) for game software—according to Euromonitor, a global market researcher.
Read the story here and discuss it in the forum.
As Video Game Sales Lag, Heads Begin to Roll
Sales may not be dire. But already, some heads are rolling. Atari announced today that it replaced chief executive David Gardner with his No. 2 executive, Jeff Lapin. Atari has had a rocky time, but it is preparing for a big launch in January of its Star Trek Online property, being developed by Cryptic Studios. In this survival of the fittest environment, layoffs are hitting the weaker companies.
See the story here and discuss it in the forum.
NPD Group: Behind the Numbers, October 2009
Earlier this year conventional wisdom held that the video game industry would make a dramatic turnaround in the back half of 2009. However when the NPD Group released October 2009 retail sales data last week, the dire reality of the market was plain for all to see.
In every segment of the market – hardware, software, and accessories – the revenues were down significantly, and the overall total was down 19% relative to October 2008.
See the story here and discuss it in the forum.
Eutechnyx Shows the Value of Self-Help
“We’ll see some more good companies go to the wall purely as a result of chronic bank support, which in turn will limit our ability to climb out of this recession quickly,” explains Eutechnyx founder Darren Jobling.
Eutechnyx is one of the myriad of companies that have sprung up across the country over the past two decades and made the UK the world’s third most successful developer of video games.
See the story here and discuss it in the forum.
Labour MP Blasts COD: Modern Warfare 2
Two Labour MPs locked horns today over the imminent release of a widely anticipated violent video game.
Keith Vaz, the chairman of the home affairs select committee, said Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 contained such “scenes of brutality” that its makers had placed warnings within the game itself.
He urged the government to ensure such games were not played by children – but Tom Watson, the former digital engagement minister, said it would be better for MPs to support the UK’s video gaming industry.
See the story here and discuss it in the forum.
Electronic Arts Plans to Cut 1,500 Jobs
Electronic Arts, the video game company, said it would lay off 1,500 workers and shrink its product lineup, even as it announced that it had acquired Playfish, a start-up that makes online games.