MCV 830 April 17th 2015 by Biz Media Ltd

THE BUSINESS OF VIDEO GAMES

ID@XBOX COMES OF AGE

ISSUE 830 FRIDAY APRIL 17TH 2015

MICROSOFT ON UNITING INDIES ACROSS XBOX AND PC P08

MCV Awards 2015: And the winners are... Warner Bros claims three accolades, including best publisher

Destiny takes home two prizes

by Matthew Jarvis WARNER Bros walked away the biggest winner from this year’s MCV Awards, claiming three of the night’s most prestigious prizes. WB Games UK was crowned as the top Games Publisher and PR Team, with the firm’s hit title Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor taking the Sales Triumph trophy. Bungie and Activision’s Destiny was named as the foremost New Games Brand, also winning best Game Campaign. And PlayStation continued its success by scooping the gongs for Marketing Team and Trade Marketing Team for the second year running. GAME claimed three awards – Games Retailer, Buying Team and Community Team. Meanwhile, Xbox UK was celebrated as having the finest Sales Team of the last 12 months, after putting together big deals to compete more closely with PS4. Multiple new award categories saw intense competition. Indigo Pearl won the first Agency Team trophy, with 505 Games and Twitch the first winners of the Indie Games Label and Media Team prizes, respectively. Ubisoft was honoured as the top Export Team. Over 71 games firms fought it out across 22 categories, including three special awards. Team 17 MD Debbie Bestwick was revealed as the Person of the Year, while Nintendo UK head of consumer marketing James Honeywell was lauded as an Unsung Hero of the industry. Games Centre’s Craig Kennedy was Store Manager of the Year.

THIS YEAR’S WINNERS NEW GAMES BRAND DESTINY (BUNGIE/ACTIVISION)

SALES TRIUMPH MIDDLE-EARTH: SHADOW OF MORDOR (WB GAMES UK)

GAMES RETAILER GAME DIGITAL

INDIE RETAILER GAMES CENTRE

PERIPHERALS & ACCESSORIES TURTLE BEACH

BUYING TEAM GAME DIGITAL

MARKETING TEAM PLAYSTATION UK

DIGITAL MARKETING TEAM ELECTRONIC ARTS

TRADE MARKETING TEAM PLAYSTATION UK

PR TEAM WB GAMES UK

AGENCY TEAM INDIGO PEARL

COMMUNITY TEAM GAME

DISTRIBUTION TEAM CENTRESOFT

EXPORT TEAM UBISOFT

MEDIA TEAM TWITCH

SALES TEAM XBOX UK

INDIE GAMES LABEL 505 GAMES

GAME CAMPAIGN DESTINY (BUNGIE/ACTIVISION)

GAMES PUBLISHER WB GAMES UK

PERSON OF THE YEAR DEBBIE BESTWICK, TEAM 17

UNSUNG HERO

STORE MANAGER OF THE YEAR CRAIG KENNEDY, GAMES CENTRE

JAMES HONEYWELL, NINTENDO UK

PLUS GUITAR HERO RETURNS 2015: THE YEAR OF SMARTWATCH GAMING?

CHEAT SHEET

Market Data EA rules the charts, but Battleﬁeld Hardline and FIFA’s success can’t stop a market slump

THE PUBLISHER

£15m

MCV AWARDS HOLD UP A MIRROR TO THE CHANGING GAMES BUSINESS

£13.9 396,194 units

£10m

£13.7m 475,487 units £8.2m 297,186 units

Week Ending Week Ending Week Ending Mar 28th Apr 11th Apr 4th

UK RETAIL TOP 10

BATTLEFIELD HARDLINE

FIFA 15

Grand Theft Auto V

Far Cry 4

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

Bloodborne

Forza Horizon 2

Borderlands: The Handsome Collection

Halo: The Master Chief Collection

Microsoft

Minecraft: Xbox Edition

Microsoft

EA EA Rockstar Ubisoft Activision Blizzard Sony Microsoft 2K Games

SPONSORED BY

PRE-ORDER TOP 10

glorious thing happens when you offer people the chance to give their views anonymously: you get pure, unfiltered honesty. This year, the 60 MCV Awards judges offered up the clearest reflection of the industry yet. Those execs - unmasked and named below so we can thank them for their time and efforts - in a majority of cases spoke very clearly about who should win. This year there was no outright dominating force, unlike last year¹s Sony seven-win sweep. Instead, we have 16 individual victors out of 22 awards probably the longest list of winners yet. Warner came out on top with the most important wins on the night: three awards including the top prize for Game Publisher, plus Sales Triumph and PR Team. This tiny team has craved trade recognition for some time, and the judges were unanimous - now is their time for glory. Elsewhere GAME also scored three, while PlayStation and Activision took two top marketing prizes each. But the real story last night was about individual breakthroughs: EA winning Digital Marketing Team after spending

The real story at last night’s MCV Awards was about individual breakthroughs. years talking up its digital ambitions; Xbox¹s well-deserved Sales Team win after a year of smart deals with retail to compete better with PS4; 505 Games winning the new Indie Games Label as it transitions to funding and publishing ‘smaller’ (read: lower-budget) titles for core (read: more sophisticated) consumers. And our three new people awards - Store Manager of the Year, Unsung Hero and Person of the Year - could not have found better homes than on the mantlepieces of Craig Kennedy, James Honeywell and Debbie Bestwick. The last year in video games have not necessarily been easy across the board. But I hope that the MCV Awards have helped acknowledge how things are changing and where the important battles are being won.

MCV AWARDS 2015: THE JUDGES THANKS to our 60 judges who helped decide the winners - and everyone else who nominated or put forward suggestions for ﬁnalists or Special Award recipients. The judges for our 22 main awards were: Alan Dykes, Ubisoft; Andy Yates, Nintendo; Anna Downing, Sega; Antoine Molant, Capcom; Charlotte Knight, GAME; Chris Peacock, Exertis; Colin Blackwood, Electronic Arts; Daniel Krupa, IGN; Dave Nelson, PDP; David Neal, CentreSoft; Declan Gough, Future; Faye Le Duc,

AMIIBO DARK PIT (WII U)

Amiibo Splatoon Girl (Wii U)

Nintendo

Amiibo Splatoon Squid Bundle (Wii U)

Nintendo

Direct; Justin Gaﬀney, Square Enix; Kim Adcock, OPM Jobs; Louise Marchant, Ubisoft; Marianne Scottow, Xbox;

Amiibo Ganondorf (Wii U)

Nintendo

Marilena Papacosta, Koei Tecmo; Mark Slaughter, Ubisoft; Martyn Gibbs, GAME; Mike Fethers, The Hut Group;

Amiibo Zero Suit Samus (Wii U)

Nintendo

Murray Pannel, PlayStation UK; Neil Stephen, Rockstar Games; Paul Sulyok, Green Man Gaming; Margaret Pearson,

Amiibo Splatoon Boy (Wii U)

Nintendo

CentreSoft; Phil Browes, HMV; Phil Moore, Grainger Games; Rachael Grant, Activision; Reena Sood, Warner Bros

Amiibo Paltuena (Wii U)

Nintendo

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (PS4)

Square Enix

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PS4)

Bandai Namco

Amiibo Jigglypuﬀ (Wii U)

April 17th 2015

NINTENDO

Nintendo

Exertis; Fergal Gara, PlayStation UK; Frazer Locke, Amazon; Harvey Eagle, Xbox; Imre Schouten, Sodesco; Jake Wright, Click Entertainment; James Binns, PC Games N; James Honeywell, Nintendo; Jay Patel, Respondez; John Clark, Sega; Jon Rooke, Sega; Jonathan Grimes, Microsoft; Jonathan Hayes, Tesco; Joshua Hetherington, Shop

Games UK; Richard Keen, PlayStation UK; Rob Cooper, Ubisoft; Robert Lindsay, Games Centre; Rosemary Buahin, PlayStation UK; Roy Stackhouse, Activision; Sarah Jasper-Baker, The Hut Group; Sean Brennan, Bethesda; Shaun Campbell, Electronic Arts; Shaun White, Electronic Arts; Shelly Pearce, Nintendo; Simon Byron, Premier PR; Simon Urquhart, Microsoft; Spencer Crossley, Warner Bros; Stephen Staley, Gameseek; Steve Moore, Simply Games; Stuart Dinsey, Curve Digital; Stuart Turner, Capcom; Tracey McGarrigan, Green Man Gaming

www.mcvuk.com

CHEAT SHEET

Price war erupts in PS4 vs Xbox One battle by Christopher Dring

TOP DEALS

Xbox One and PS4 are retailing for well below £300, as the price war between the consoles continues. Xbox announced last week that UK retailers would be lowering the cost of its console to £299.99 but some stores have gone even lower - GameStop is selling the system for under £280. Last week, the average selling price of Xbox One was the lowest it has ever been. PS4 oﬀers have included bundles with The Order and Bloodborne at retailers such as Argos, GAME and GameStop. The latter is running a temporary promotion that includes a PS4 and Bloodborne for under £290. The price war appears to be working, with over 350,000 PS4 and Xbox One consoles sold in the UK so far this year.

Xbox One Solus: £279.97 at GameStop UK Xbox One + FIFA 15 + Forza Horizon 2: £299.86 at Amazon Xbox One + Ori And The Blind Forest: £299.99 at GAME PS4 (Solus): £289.99 at Simply Games PS4 + Bloodborne: £288.97 at GameStop UK Microsoft lowered the cost of the Xbox One in a retailled promotion last week, but some outlets have already undercut the new price

Data courtesy of UK retailers quoting GfK Chart-Track ﬁgures.

PS4 + Bloodborne + The Order: 1886 + Destiny: £369.99 at GAME

GAME: Guitar Hero and Rock Band can win over hardcore and casual players

‘2015 will be the year of smartwatch gaming’

by Christopher Dring

by Matthew Jarvis

THE CEO of GAME is excited about the imminent return of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, because these games appeal to so many diﬀerent gamers. Martyn Gibbs’ comments follows that of GameStop’s international boss, who told MCV last year that ‘now is a good time for Guitar Hero to come back’. Rock Band 4 was announced for Xbox One and PS4 by developer Harmonix last month, while this week Activision unveiled Guitar Hero Live for PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Wii U and smartphones . “Guitar Hero and Rock Band were enormous within the industry and then sort of ﬁzzled out. Do I feel that they deserve to not be around? No, not at all,” Gibbs told MCV. “They just need real key thoughts on how they

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are positioned and what type of gamers would want to play those types of games.” He added: “When you look back on Guitar Hero and Rock Band, those customers traversed a lot

SMARTWATCH games could be a major force in the industry, as long as developers don’t just port smartphone titles to the platform, says Everywear Games. Aki Järvilehto, who is the CEO of the smartwatch developer, told MCV: “We expect 2015 to be the year of smartwatch gaming. He added: “Smartwatches and mobile games are quite different markets and the people who buy smartwatches are going to look for entertainment that’s specifically tailored for them. It’s going to be very different from games you’ve seen before and I think a lot of people will be surprised. “We’ll deliver games that you can play in five- to 15-second sessions, where the experience builds from short sessions

Guitar Hero and Rock Band was the one product category that traversed various diﬀerent segments Martyn Gibbs, GAME

of diﬀerent segments. They were core gamers as well as casual gamers – they were FIFA players, but they were Call of Duty guys as well. It was the one product category that seemed to traverse various diﬀerent segments.”

into something you can be passionate about over days, weeks and months. “It’s all about creating games which are more fun on a smartwatch than any other screen.”

April 17th 2015

NEWS

UK retail expects toys-to-life growth as LEGO enters the fray By Christopher Dring LEADING UK games retailers expect the toys-to-life genre to get even bigger this year with the arrival of LEGO Dimensions. Warner Bros’ game will unite LEGO characters such as Gandalf and Batman, and is coming to Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii U on September 29th. The title will join new entries in the Skylanders and Disney Infinity IPs, as well as continued releases from Nintendo’s Amiibo range. “We saw strong results on Infinity and Skylanders last year and they’re both showing growth,” said Lorna Simpson, toys-to-life content manager at GAME. “Amiibo got off to a great start. It’s shown there’s room for more players in toys-to-life. With LEGO

Dimensions we’re expecting toysto-life to continue to grow in 2015.” ShopTo senior buyer Alison Fraser added: “LEGO Dimensions has all the ingredients to sell very well. As an online retailer, packing is always a challenge with these items, but pre-orders will dictate what size the range needs to be.” But there remain challenges for UK stores, including the high price of products such as LEGO Dimensions, plus the demands on shelf space. There are now four major toys-to-life ranges, which will arrive alongside other spacedemanding products such as Guitar Hero Live and Rock Band 4. “LEGO is a recognised brand outside of gaming. Dimensions has a real opportunity to broaden toys-to-life,” said Simply Games purchasing director Steve Moore.

(Left to right) ShopTo’s Fraser, Tesco’s Pettit, GAME’s Simpson and Simply Games’ Moore say there’s room for growth in the toys-to-life market

“The price of a Starter Pack is potentially too high to really maximise this opportunity.” Tesco’s assistant buyer for gaming Samantha Pettit added: “We’ve seen strong

growth in the toys-to-life market this year. “Space can be an issue. But with support from suppliers and clever merchandising, we can bring the strongest brands.”

KING CRUSHES TV AD MARKET COMPETITION This week GameTime examines how mobile games TV ads have grown this year so far

2014 YEAR-TO-DATE

2015 YEAR-TO-DATE

KING.COM, 33%

KING.COM, 45%

SONY, 14%

SUPERCELL, 22%

NINTENDO, 9%

MACHINE ZONE, 6%

INNOGAMES, 8%

NINTENDO, 5%

MICROSOFT, 8%

NORDEUS, 4%

ELECTRONIC ARTS, 5%

2K GAMES, 3%

GOODGAME STUDIOS, 4%

SONY, 3%

OTHER, 17%

OTHER, 11%

UP until March 25th, the games TV ad market has recorded an eight per cent year-on-year growth. The circa-500 TVR increase versus 2014 has largely been driven by even further growth in mobile and online games, an area which occupies well over 50 per cent of the games TV ad market.

Sony and Microsoft’s share of total TV ads has decreased yearon-year as launch campaigns were still in full eﬀect this time last year. The biggest challenge for traditional games advertisers will be maintaining a share of voice versus the ‘always on’ mobile/ online campaigns; something that

2014 saw a greater degree of fragmentation in the market, with emerging ﬁrms such as King and Innogames transplanting traditional players like Sony and Nintendo. This has continued into 2015, as traditional advertisers occupy less than a ﬁve per cent share of a market dominated by mobile.

Nintendo will have to keep in mind when launching its mobile games later this year. This is especially true in light of Supercell’s announcement that it tripled its revenue in 2014. Though trailing behind King, Supercell achieved growth with just 10 per cent of the volume of staﬀ.

MCV GameTime is provided by Generation Media 0207 255 4650 | www.generationmedia.co.uk

April 17th 2015

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DATA MARCH

MONTHLY CHARTS A number of huge launches like Battleﬁeld Hardline and Dying Light can’t help UK games retail in March as fewer units were sold and lower revenue was generated year-on-year

THIS MONTHS UPS AND DOWNS REVENUE generated by software sales fell 10.8 per cent year-onyear to £54.9m

Dying Light. In March the ﬁrm held the second largest share of the market. But EA came out on top in the publisher rankings thanks to the launch of the latest in its Battleﬁeld series, Hardline. That title debuted at No.1 in the Top 40 and was the biggest release of the year to date. Meanwhile, nearly half of all revenue spent on software in March was on PS4 games, while one third was spent on Xbox One titles.

INDIVIDUAL FORMATS TOP 40: MARCH (FEB 22ND – MARCH 28TH)

THANKS TO the launch of new IP Dying Light, Warner Bros’ market share shot up IN SPITE OF a few big launches, the number of units sold in March fell by 17 per cent year-on-year

SQUARE ENIX returns to the publisher Top Ten rankings on the back of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD April 17th 2015

DESPITE a few big launches, the UK video games market this year continues to track behind 2014. A mere 1.67m units were sold in March, a 17 per cent drop on compared with the same period last year. Meanwhile, £54.9m was generated in software revenue, constituting a 10.2 per cent decline year-on-year. It was a good month for WARNER BROS, whose market share rose considerably due to the launch of new open-world zombie IP

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

TITLE Battlefield Hardline Dying Light Battlefield Hardline Dying Light Bloodborne Grand Theft Auto V Grand Theft Auto V The Order 1886 Minecraft: Xbox Edition FIFA 15 Final Fantasy Type-0 HD FIFA 15 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Mario Party 10 Dragon Ball Xenoverse Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Borderlands: The Handsome Collection Forza Horizon 2 The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D Borderlands: The Handsome Collection Evolve Minecraft: PlayStation Edition FIFA 15 Halo: The Master Chief Collection Far Cry 4 Battlefield Hardline Dragon Ball Xenoverse Evolve The Last of Us Remastered Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Minecraft: Xbox Edition Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Terraria Minecraft: PlayStation Edition Destiny Disney Infinity 2.0 Far Cry 4 Grand Theft Auto V Assassin’s Creed Unity FIFA 15

FORMAT PS4 PS4 XO XO PS4 PS4 XO PS4 360 PS4 PS4 XO XO Wii U PS4 PS4 XO XO 3DS PS4 XO PS3 360 XO PS4 360 XO PS4 PS4 3DS XO 360 360 PS4 PS4 360 XO 360 XO PS3

PUBLISHER EA Warner Bros EA Warner Bros Sony Rockstar Rockstar Sony Microsoft EA Square Enix EA Activision Blizzard Nintendo Bandai Namco Activision Blizzard 2K Games Microsoft Nintendo 2K Games 2K Games Sony EA Microsoft Ubisoft EA Bandai Namco 2K Games Sony Nintendo/Capcom Microsoft Activision Blizzard 505 Games Sony Activision Blizzard Disney Ubisoft Rockstar Ubisoft EA

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MARCH DATA 01

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE BY PUBLISHER [UNITS] LM 04 08 01 06 05 02 03 07 13 17

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

TITLE EA Warner Bros Take-Two Sony Nintendo Activision Blizzard Ubisoft Microsoft Square Enix Sega

MARKET SHARE 18.7% 12.6% 11.0% 8.8% 7.5% 6.5% 6.4% 4.9% 3.2% 2.9%

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE BY PUBLISHER [VALUE] LM 02 08 01 06 05 04 06 07 19 12

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 03 08 09 10

TITLE EA Warner Bros Take-Two Sony Nintendo Activision Blizzard Ubisoft Microsoft Bandai Namco Square Enix

MARKET SHARE 23.4% 15.1% 13.1% 10.0% 6.7% 5.5% 5.0% 3.5% 3.5% 3.1%

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE BY FORMAT [UNITS] LM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

TITLE PlayStation 4 Xbox One Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 Nintendo 3DS PC Wii U Wii PlayStation Vita Nintendo DS

MARKET SHARE 34.9% 25.5% 13.3% 8.8% 6.4% 4.8% 3.2% 1.1% 1.0% 0.9%

SOFTWARE MARKET SHARE BY FORMAT [VALUE] LM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

TITLE PlayStation 4 Xbox One Xbox 360 Nintendo 3DS PlayStation 3 Wii U PC PlayStation Vita Wii Nintendo DS

PRESENTS

MARKET SHARE 43.3% 30.3% 8.8% 5.3% 5.5% 2.9% 2.4% 0.6% 0.5% 0.3%

ALL FORMATS TOP 40: MARCH (FEB 22ND - MARCH 28TH) 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

TITLE Battlefield Hardline Dying Light Grand Theft Auto V FIFA 15 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare Bloodborne The Order 1886 Dragon Ball Xenoverse Minecraft: Xbox Edition Far Cry 4 Borderlands: The Handsome Collection Final Fantasy Type-0 HD Minecraft: PlayStation Edition Evolve Forza Horizon 2 Destiny WWE 2K15 Disney Infinity 2.0 Mario Party 10 Terraria The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D The Crew Zombie Army Trilogy Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Halo: The Master Chief Collection LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Assassin’s Creed Unity Super Smash Bros The Last of Us Remastered LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Watch Dogs Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag DMC: Definitive Edition The Evil Within Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare Wolfenstein: The New Order Call of Duty: Ghosts Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor Saints Row IV: Re-elected/Gat of Hell

5 SECOND FACTS

FORMAT PUBLISHER PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC EA PS4, XO, PC Warner Bros PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Rockstar PS4, XO, PS3, 360, Wii, 3DS, Vita, PC EA PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Activision Blizzard PS4 Sony PS4 Sony PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Bandai Namco XO, 360 Microsoft PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO 2K Games PS4, XO Square Enix PS4, PS3, Vita Sony PS4, XO, PC 2K Games XO, 360 Microsoft PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Activision Blizzard PS4, XO, PS3, 360 2K Games PS4, XO, Wi U, PS3, 360 Disney Wii U Nintendo PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC 505 Games/Merge 3DS Nintendo PS4, XO, 360, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO Rebellion/Sold Out PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Capcom XO Microsoft PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita, PC Warner Bros PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft Wii U, 3DS Nintendo PS4 Sony PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita, DS, PC Warner Bros 3DS Nintendo/Capcom PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO Capcom PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Bethesda PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, PC EA PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Bethesda PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, PC Activision Blizzard PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Warner Bros PS4, XO Deep Silver

Read and remember these stats so you can sound clever at the next Monday morning meeting...

253%

£299.99

$5m

$1.5m

eSports ﬁrm Major League Gaming has announed a viewership increase of 253 per cent on its online MLG.tv service

The price of an Xbox One has dropped to £299.99 at UK retail

NCSoft has invested $5m in Vancouver-based mobile developer This Game Studio

VR app store Wear VR has raised $1.5m in investment. The ﬁrm claims to have 900 apps on the store, and 200,000 downloads to date

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PDP design & manufacture the Oﬃcial Microsoft licensed Xbox ONE Charging Doc europesales@pdp.com

www.pdp.com April 17th 2015

XXX XXX INTERVIEW AGOSTINO SIMONETTA

ID@XBOX COMES OF AGE It’s been a big few month for Microsoft’s ID@Xbox programme – it’s been showing off a pipeline of impressive indie titles, and it’s giving these developers an easy way to get involved with Windows 10, too. Alex Calvin catches up with European boss Agostino Simonetta

ight now, most major publishers are chasing the booming indie market and Microsoft is no different with its ID@Xbox programme. The firm is coming off a busy few months. At GDC it announced that it was planning on having games from the scheme appear on both Xbox consoles and Windows 10 devices. It has also been showing off some 22 titles including Yacht Club Games’ Shovel Knight and Makin Games’ Raging Justice at GDC, Rezzed and PAX East. “I joined the team [from PlayStation] nearly six months ago to increase our efforts in the European region,” ID@Xbox account manager Agostino Simonetta says. “It feels like we are having a very good moment. This month has been a fantastic time for us and there are some excellent titles on the way. It feels pretty good at the moment, but we are also increasing our efforts.” ID@XBOX ON WINDOWS The big news coming out of GDC is that ID@Xbox titles will be able to launch on Windows 10 as well as Xbox One. “ID@Xbox’s aim is to enable devs that want to bring their content to Windows 10 devices. Those range from PC, desktop, laptop, Surface and touch devices. We’ve allowed developers to bring their content over with integration

April 17th 2015

of all the features of Xbox Live. Developers can choose to launch games on both platforms with cross-platform functionality. “The reception has been fantastic. Developers quickly realised the opportunity that Windows 10 is offering them and there’s an element of trust in the ID@Xbox programme and seeing the success we are already having on the console, so we have plenty of developers coming to us and talking to us about their plans and what they want to do.” Microsoft hopes that by utilising the strength of its Xbox brand it can reclaim the ground it has lost in the PC space to Steam. Not that Simonetta sees Valve’s PC platform as a rival to Windows 10. “I admire Steam as a platform, but we don’t see this as a competitor,” he says. “In fact, we announced at GDC that Steam and Steam games will be compatible with Windows 10, so our priority is simply to ensure the best games are available on our platforms.”

No-one could have predicted Minecraft. We’re letting indies express themselves and then great content will follow.

INDIE CHARM OFFENSIVE When ID@Xbox was first announced, the programme was criticised for its strict parity clauses for developers. Studios had to launch their games on Xbox One first, or simultaneously with other platforms. However, the company

Agostino Simonetta, ID@Xbox

00 08

has since pulled back a little on this policy. “It’s very simple,” Simonetta explains. “If an indie developer needs to ship serially, because they don’t have the resources to ship simultaneously, we totally get that and it’s not a problem. “But if the game’s not going to be out on Xbox for a significant period of time, whether it’s because the developer signed an exclusivity agreement, or worked on a different project in between, we ask that they add something so the game feels fresh on Xbox.” And Simonetta and ID@Xbox is continuing its indie outreach, planning events around the world to reach developers “ID@Xbox will organise events across the globe and we are going to be a lot more visible at industry events as well,” Simonetta explains. “The effort is there. We know that we are doing a great job at the moment, but we also know we need to keep striving to be better. “We’re enabling developers to come up with amazing ideas that we never predicted. Titles that have been so successful that they could peak Minecraft. Minecraft is not something that could have been predicted or looked for. We should enable developers to express themselves, and then the great content will follow.”

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INSIGHT

HOW PS4 AND XBOX ONE ARE TRANSFORMING THE DIGITAL GAMES MARKET cheaper than a new boxed title – digital consumers take more risks in trying out titles they wouldn’t buy physically. In turn, shoppers are buying digital more frequently than last year, making on average four purchases in the three months leading up to January – twice that of the average mint physical shopper.

As digital gaming continues to thrive, OSSIAN ROBERTSON, consumer retail analyst at Kantar Worldpanel, examines what’s driving its success and how it can boost the entire industry

he end of 2014 saw thousands of new digital shoppers enter the UK market, driven by new technology and cheaper prices. The PS4 and Xbox One have brought with them new platforms for digital gaming, with the sustained consumer interest in these devices contributing £28 million to the sector. Increased sales of Xbox One helped the Xbox Live Marketplace boost its share of the digital audience to 29 per cent, while continued strong sales of PS4 have created more potential for repeat digital sales. In fact, out of all repeat shopper spend, 26 per cent was for Sony’s console, with its overall digital share growing to 35 per cent thanks to a wider owner base.

DIGITALLY DIVERSIFYING Despite the rise in the number of digital games purchases, the lower price points mean that digital games need to be supplemented, by increasing individual spend or attracting more shoppers, if the sector is to remain in growth. We saw 300,000 additional shoppers buy into the digital gaming market in the 12 weeks to January 18th, accounting for 46 per cent of market value. Over Christmas there tends to be a temporary step away from the traditional gamer profile – young and male – and this year was no different, with children and families making up 43 per cent of digital sales value during this time.

Sustained consumer interest in the PS4 and Xbox One has contributed £28 million to the UK digital games market. Ossian Robertson, Kantar Worldpanel

LETTING OFF STEAM But while Sony and Microsoft are enjoying growth, it’s not as good a picture for the PC. This most established of the digital platforms has become squeezed by the new consoles, losing 15 per cent of its share of digital gaming during the final quarter of 2014. Steam is famous for its sales, but that means more shoppers buy only discounted games through its platform than through Xbox or PlayStation, where consumers are more likely to pay full price. As seen with Steam, cost is an important factor for digital customers. With an average price of £9 – almost three times

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Minecraft has been a digital smash hit on both PC and consoles

If retailers and developers want to bring about long-lasting improvement and capitalise on positive trends in the market, they must do more to permanently broaden the digital owner base and bring in new customers throughout the year. Female shoppers, for example, still only make up 14 per cent of the digital market, compared with 34 per cent for mint physical games. Making an effort to appeal to less represented groups will allow the market to take advantage of successes like the ongoing interest in the latest-generation devices. THE GIFT OF DIGITAL As in other industries, the rise of digital sales is having a significant impact on physical retailers. Yet, physical retailers have an advantage over the PS4 and the Xbox One, as neither allows shoppers to directly purchase digital content as a gift through their sales platform. Given that over a third of the annual value in the new boxed games market comes from sales intended as gifts, this is a factor that digital platforms are currently missing out on; gift purchasing remains one of the areas where physical stores have the advantage over digital, with retailers stocking physical gift cards for digital content, making them better placed to capture gift spend. With over a million individuals planning to buy a latest-generation console and a number of big-name releases over the next 12 months, we’re likely to see more gamers propel digital gaming to record levels. Recent developments have proved that the market is still full of innovation and digital is likely to take an even larger bite out of the games market in 2015. However, opportunities are being missed to truly build on these successes.

April 17th 2015

MARKET MOVES

APPOINTMENTS

NEW CEOS FOR CAPCOM, CODEMASTERS AND JAGEX Cousens leaves Codemasters O New production editor for GamesMaster O UKIE promotes Blackwell JAGEX | Industry veteran ROD COUSENS has left Codemasters and joined RuneScape studio Jagex as CEO. Cousens held roles at Activision and Acclaim prior to Codemasters, and was previously chairmen of the Jagex board. He has now left the racing studio after a ten-year stint to join Jagex, filling the role left by previous CEO MARK GERHARD. At Codemasters, current COO FRANK SAGNIER will take on the role of CEO. “We sincerely thank Rod for his many achievements and wish

FUTURE | GamesMaster has a new production editor. ROBIN VALENTINE joins the multiformat title having previously written for outlets including Eurogamer, GamesIndustry.biz and GamesMaster. Valentine’s hiring follows the departure of DANIELLA LUCAS, who has joined Future’s GamesRadar+ as content manager. GamesMaster editor JOEL GREGORY said: “It’s great to have Robin on board. During his stints so far he’s shown tremendous aptitude and enthusiasm, and it’s clear that he appreciates what GamesMaster is all about.”

him every success in his new venture.” said Sagnier. CAPCOM | The publisher’s European branch has a new CEO. Ten-year company veteran KATSUHIKO ICHII has taken over the role of Capcom Europe boss, replacing HIROSHI TOBISAWA, who returns to Capcom Japan. Ichii spent ten years at Capcom Japan and has held a number of roles within its games business. “It is an honour to be joining Capcom Europe and I am excited to be part of the team there,” Ichii said. “I look forward to driving the business further across Europe in the years to come.”

UKIE | The trade body has promoted THEO BLACKWELL to head of policy and public affairs. Blackwell has been running UKIE’s Next Gen Skills campaign since 2011, helping to introduce the new computing curriculum. He also sits on the UK Forum for Computing Education, and was recently UKIE’s representative on Maggie Philbin’s Digital Skills Taskforce. “The next Parliament will be such an important time to support, grow and promote the UK games industry,” Blackwell said. “We’ll identify new champions for the sector to ensure that the contribution of games to the creative economy is understood.”

AROUND THE INDUSTRY ONLIVE | The game streaming specialist is closing its services this month, with some of its assets being sold to PlayStation. OnLive’s offerings – including its Game Service, OnLive Desktop and Second Life Go – will continue to operate until April 30th but, as of April 3rd, no further charges will be made on subscriptions. Sony has acquired OnLive’s portfolio of patents, covering 140 different technologies, which includes ‘substantial innovations in cloud gaming’. OnLive was valued at $1.8 billion (£1.2bn) in 2011, but the terms of Sony’s deal have not been disclosed. In March 2014 it revealed CloudLift, allowing players to stream titles from Steam on other devices. This follows the Sony’s purchase of former OnLive rival Gaikai in 2012 for $380m.

April 17th 2015

NEXON | The online games firm is acquiring Korea-based Boolean Games. The developer is best known for its action title Dark Avenger and sequel Darkness Reborn, the latter of which has been downloaded 10m times since its release in November. “Boolean Games is an outstanding mobile game studio in Korea, with a successful track record of developing global hit titles,” said Nexon Korea CEO Jiwon Park. “With this partnership, we can bolster our global mobile pipeline with more top-quality titles. We are excited about working with the talented team at Boolean Games, combining their proven development capabilities with Nexon’s F2P know-how and global distribution platform.”

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EDITORIAL CONTACTS

EDITORIAL CONTACTS Christopher Dring Editor

Michael French Publisher

cdring@nbmedia.com

mfrench@nbmedia.com

Ben Parﬁtt Associate Editor

Alex Boucher Group Sales Manager

bparﬁtt@nbmedia.com

aboucher@nbmedia.com

Alex Calvin Staﬀ Writer

Conor Tallon Account Manager

acalvin@nbmedia.com

ctallon@nbmedia.com

Matt Jarvis Staﬀ Writer

Sam Richwood Designer

mjarvis@nbmedia.com

srichwood@nbmedia.com

Production Executive: Elizabeth Parker eparker@nbmedia.com

Finance Manager: Michael Canham mcanham@nbmedia.com

Head of Operations: Stuart Moody smoody@nbmedia.com

Head of Design and Production: Kelly Sambridge ksambridge@nbmedia.com

Circulation: Lianne Davey ldavey@nbmedia.com

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Saxon House, 6a St. Andrew Street, Hertford, Hertfordshire, England SG14 1JA Newbay Media specialises in tradededicated print and digital publishing for entertainment and leisure markets. As well as MCV, Newbay publishes Develop, PCR, ToyNews, Music Week, MI Pro, Audio Pro International and BikeBiz. It also has two onlineonly brands: Mobile Entertainment, dedicated to the growing mass market smartphone sector, and Licensing.biz, for everyone in the global licensing industry. It also runs a number of events including the MCV Industry Excellence Awards, the London Games Conference and the Games Media Awards.

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April 17th 2015

XXX XXX INTERVIEW EVERYWEAR GAMES

HERE, THERE AND EVERYWEAR: THE WORLD’S FIRST SMARTWATCH GAMES DEVELOPER Everywear Games is the new venture from the industry executives behind Angry Birds and Alan Wake, and it plans to create games exclusively for smartwatches. But why make the leap to the nascent platform? Matthew Jarvis asks CEO Aki Järvilehto

t’s been years in the making, but the smartwatch might be about to transform gaming as we know it. Following efforts to crack the sector by start-ups such as Pebble, as well as established players like Motorola and Samsung, the launch of the Apple Watch later this month could propel the smartwatch into the mainstream, just like iPhone and iPad did for smartphones and tablets. And, like the wave of mobile games that followed in the wake of the Apple’s iconic handset, this could also have a huge effect on the face of the games market. One company hoping to be ready should smartwatch gaming take off is Everywear Games. “We’re the first game developer to focus on smartwatch games,” says CEO and co-founder Aki Järvilehto. “We want to be the people who make smartwatches fun.” Järvilehto and his team certainly have the repertoire to back up their ambitions. Järvilehto served as EVP of Finnish developer Remedy Entertainment for more than two years, launching titles including Alan Wake and its follow-up, American Nightmare. Executive producer Markus Tuppurainen previously served as lead designer at Rovio for four years, leading the creation of multiple Angry Birds games, including spin-off Bad Piggies. Former VP of technology at mobile giant Digital Chocolate, CTO Mika Tammenkoski, completes the trio. “We expect 2015 to be the year of smartwatch gaming,” Järvilehto continues. “This is all completely new. It’s going to be very different from the games you’ve seen

April 17th 2015

before, and I think a lot of people will be surprised.” WRISTY BUSINESS With a number of smartwatches already on the market, some firms have attempted to pare down mobile games – such as Tetris and Flappy Bird – to a wrist-mounted form. But Järvilehto says that it will take completely new ideas to allow the platform to fully bloom. “The people who buy smartwatches are going to look for entertainment that’s specifically tailored for them,” he explains. “We’re talking about very different devices and game experiences. “It’s all about creating experiences you can feel emotional about – games that are more fun on a smartwatch than any other screen.” In fact, Järvilehto compares the sort of games suitable for smartwatches as being closer to the rapid-fire nature of social media. “We’ll deliver ‘Twitter-sized’ entertainment,” he states. “Games that you can play in five- to 15-second sessions, where the experience builds from short sessions into something you can be passionate about over days, weeks and months.” This, Järvilehto adds, will be the real barrier – defining smartwatches as their own distinct platform, free of an association with smartphones. “We need to challenge ourselves to really understand how people will be playing these games,” he says. “When they will be playing them, and what kind of entertainment they want in that context.

2015 will be the year of smartwatch gaming.

“That’s why we’re creating new kind of games.” The Apple Watch could be the lit match to the fuse of smartwatch gaming, but it remains to be seen which games companies will be first to ride the rocket on the way up. Everywear hopes to be the first on board. “We’re going to see a lot of things happening over a very short period of time, with both hardware and software,” Järvilehto predicts. “The next year will be tremendously interesting and each year is likely to bring something new. “This is the start and now the race is on.”

Aki Järvilehto, Everywear Games

The Apple Watch and other smartwatches will oﬀer completely new ways to play games, says Everywear’s Järvilehto

00 12

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GAME INTERVIEW

WHAT’S NEXT FOR GAME? Last Christmas was one of the busiest retail has had for years, so why are GAME’s profits down? And what does that mean for its future? Christopher Dring asks CEO Martyn Gibbs

“Craig [Fletcher, Multiplay founder] is part of our management team and he’s an important cog in the wheel of GAME Digital.”

SILVER LININGS For all the negative press, it’s important to keep perspective over GAME’s performance. It did make a profit last year, it accounts for

CRYSTAL BALL Its recent financial results are the first real test for this new GAME. The business has invested in technology, digital (it now stocks over 5,000 digital products), mobile, eSports and events, but in the short-term it still relies on physical games. That’s a market that appears impossible to predict; most analysts expected disc sales to increase last year; they didn’t. They now expect sales to grow this year, but the market is currently down. Christmas will be key, although the announcements of new toy-to-life products and the return of Guitar Hero has been offset by delays to games like Uncharted and Zelda. This all suggests some uncertainty about GAME’s future. Is the business changing fast enough? It’s a legitimate question, but this is a GAME that has shown a willingness for change. It is a nimbler business than the one that faltered in 2012, with shorter store leases and money in the bank. Its results may have disappointed, but the message from GAME is that there’s no need to worry. Not today. “While there has been some short-term challenges, we are well positioned to capitalise on a strong PS4 and Xbox One install base,” concludes Gibbs. “We’ve had solid performance in a competitive market, we’ve got good market share and made progress on our strategic priorities. GAME has a solid foundation to drive growth.”

here was no escaping the headline that surrounded GAME’s latest financials. Its revenue was down, and its profits even more so. It wasn’t a severe decline, and there were some positives (including strong market share), but with PS4 and Xbox One performing so strongly, analysts would have anticipated a more lucrative six months. There were some mitigating circumstances, namely a price war that erupted on Black Friday and lasted until December 25th. Will GAME avoid a price bloodbath next time? CEO Martyn Gibbs warns that Q4 discounting is here to stay, and that anyone hoping to prevent Black Friday this year is ‘foolish’. “Consumer appetite for Black Friday as an event is here to stay. There are learnings about how we’d manage that programme slightly differently this year.” Another issue surrounds sluggish software performance. Although there are already 3.5m PS4 and Xbox Ones in UK living rooms, game sales remain slow. Something exacerbated by the heavy hardware bundling that took place over Christmas. “New releases are performing well,” defends Gibbs. “Battlefield: Hardline performed above our forecast. But in terms of back catalogue, with so much good content given away with PS4 and Xbox One at Christmas, that has been softer than we were expecting.”

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GAME remains in a strong position, despite a competitive Christmas that saw a dip in proﬁts

a third of UK games retail and its oft-quoted plan ‘to build the most valuable community of gamers’ appears to be working, with a rise in GAME Reward Card holders. It’s also just claimed three MCV Awards. As for its recent initiatives - such as GAME Wallet, GAMEDroid, GAMEtronics, GAME Marketplace and more – some are destined to be more successful than others, but they all offer alternative revenue streams for when the boxed market isn’t performing as expected. The biggest recent development at GAME has been its acquisition of Multiplay for £20m. eSports may not be a proven money-spinner, but it is flourishing and Multiplay significantly bolsters GAME’s events business. Furthermore, GAME has often struggled to generate revenue from the PC market – and Multiplay offers it insight into that fast growing, largely digital, sector. “[Because of a lack of data] there would have been things in the PC realm that we may have missed that Multiplay is all over,” says Gibbs.

There would have been things in the PC realm that we might have missed that the Multiplay guys are all over. Martyn Gibbs, GAME

April 17th 2015

GUITAR HERO’S RETURN

GUITAR HERO IS BACK ON THE ROAD For a time, Guitar Hero was one of the biggest brands on the globe. But due to an overabundance of content, the series burnt out. Now the franchise is making a triumphant return, but what is it doing to win back fans? Alex Calvin speaks to developer Freestyle to find out

ight years ago, Guitar Hero ruled the world. The series was a runaway success, dominating both the game space and pop culture at large. But after Guitar Hero and competitor Rock Band flooded the market with products, gamers soon lost interest and the franchise collapsed. Now – in what has to be the industry’s worst-kept secret – Activision is bringing back Guitar Hero. Developed by UK studio FreeStyle Games – best known for the DJ Hero series – this new entry is called Guitar Hero Live. And it’s headed to PS4, Xbox One, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii U this autumn. Yet considering the franchise died five years ago, what makes Activision think there’s suddenly an audience again? “We weren’t going to bring the game back until we’d made enough of a leap forward over the previous generation of games,” project director John Napier tells MCV. “You can go and have a look on Facebook or the forums and there’s still a very active Guitar Hero community out there. There remains a large base of fans that are still playing it. They’re asking for a new game, asking when Guitar Hero is returning. We’re sure there’s demand there and we’ve made enough of a leap in order for people to want to get stuck in.” Live isn’t the exact same game consumers were playing in their droves all those years ago. Yes, players will still be using a plastic guitar peripheral and yes they will still be pressing buttons in-time with the music. But the feel of the

April 17th 2015

game is very different – gone is the ‘80s classic rock branding of the original games, replaced with a cleaner, more modern aesthetic.

DEATH OF ROCK

STAGE FRIGHT And where the original Guitar Hero titles were Rock God power fantasies, Napier says Freestyle was hoping to induce stage fright in players this time. The computer animated characters and stages of the classic games are gone, too. Now the title consists of live footage, with real crowds and bandmates reacting to your playing. And it’s from a first-person perspective, too. “It’s a question of immersion,” Napier explains. “There’s no substitute for seeing another human actually reacting to you. Stage fright was a core phrase for us that we used very early on in the project – might we be able to trigger that anticipation and sensation of knowing there’s a massive crowd out there going crazy and gamers going to have to go out there and perform? Will we be able to re-create that experience for the player? “The best way to do this was to go out and film real humans doing that. When you are looking at someone and seeing their reaction, and the crowd when they’re cheering at you, and especially when they are mouthing the lyrics back to you, that sort of thing is fantastically cool and very hard to do in computer animation. When we saw the first tests, you could see audience reactions and tell how good an experience that was and we decided this was the way to go.”

SINCE Guitar Hero’s glory years, the popularity of rock music has waned somewhat. This could be an issue for Guitar Hero – a title for which rock music is pretty key. But Project director John Napier doesn’t agree. “We’ve done an enormous amount of research in order to make this game, and we’ve attended a lot of festivals and we go to a lot of gigs,” he says. “Having a guitar is part of musical performance – it’s right there. So many bands and so many different acts have a

Stage fright was a core phrase for us during development. Could we trigger that sense of anticipation? John Napier, Freestyle Games

guitar as part of the music that they perform. I’m not necessarily sure I’d agree that rock music is waning in popularity. The guitar is out there. And perhaps, the breadth of genres has expanded, and perhaps guitar has proliferated into wider styles of music than before. “In the game we have a variety of different genres. We have traditional rock, we have indie rock, folk rock, dance rock and pop rock. There are other sub-genres that have a great deal of guitar music in them that are extremely popular.”

This isn’t the only change, either. The guitar peripheral controller has been redesigned, replacing the original four coloured buttons with two rows of three inputs – one set black; the other white. “The idea is that players are able to form different chord shapes with their left hand,” Napier says. “The right hand hasn’t changed a great deal but that worked well the first time. Now your left hand is making different chord shapes and it’s an experience very close to being a real musician.”

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GUITAR HERO’S RETURN THE X FACTOR

IN Guitar Hero Live, players are on-stage with bands of real people, including the dark and brooding Broken Tide. These are not real groups, though, and instead have been created by the developers at Freestyle. “We have created these bands. It’s been a fascinating process for us,” project director John Napier says. “Our artists started the process by concepting a group, and coming up with different types of band for different genres of

Guitar Hero’s new controller comes with two rows of three buttons

Of course, the Guitar Hero series isn’t the only music IP making a return this year. Rival IP Rock Band is making a comeback. That series promises to be backwards compatible with peripherals from previous games – something that Guitar Hero doesn’t do with this new controller layout. Is this higher barrier to entry something that Freestyle is worried about? “We hope that the players are going to want a new game play experience, and that’s what we’ve really tried to do here,” he says. “By having a new button layout and therefore new gameplay that comes with it, it’s a very good gameplay experience. Hopefully players will recognise the gameplay in the new title is fantastic and will get it.” ENCORE, ENCORE One of the big issues around Guitar Hero last time was the sheer number of games that

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were released. Fans could simply download new tracks to play, but downloading was a nascent concept back then, and consoles like Wii and PS2 only had basic digital networks. So Activision released a deluge of discs to satisfy the demand for more music. Freestyle doesn’t believe such a thing will happen this time, and the firm says it will release regular new music via the Guitar Hero TV (GHTV) mode. This is a music network, where consumers will be able to play along with popular music videos. There will be a number of different themed channels that are broadcasting content 24/7 “GHTV will hopefully be a wonderful way for people to discover new music with the un-ending stream of new videos that’s going to come,” Napier says. “GHTV will be the area of the game where we can very quickly and responsibly add new music

GHTV will be the area of the game we can quickly and responsibly add music to over time. John Napier, Freestyle Games

music, as well as the stages and performance venues. That’s how things started. “When we had our image of what we wanted the band to look like, we went out and cast real musicians to be your band mates. This was so that we could get people that look right alongside one another and have a chemistry on stage that we were able to insert you into. They are a product of our imagination, but it’s been a very fun thing to do.”

into the network over time. We’re going to have multiple different channels and they will be branded in different ways so what we are doing is having programming within there. It’s like a TV show, so it’s a curated experience with different music videos in there and then these different shows are going to run back-to-back. It’s easy for us to add in new content.” And following the apparent success of last year’s Skylanders Trap Team on mobile devices, Guitar Hero Live will also be coming to these platforms. “We wanted to be able to reach as many people as possible to be able to experience the game we are making,” Napier says. “The full experience will be playable on mobile. It will be a product in its own right.” But what about the business model? “You would be buying the mobile version of the game, but I can’t say much more than that.”

April 17th 2015

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INDIE INTERVIEW PLAYTONIC Sponsored by

RARE SKILLS Fans of platforming classics like Banjo-Kazooie and Donkey Kong Country rejoice – some of the minds behind those titles are returning to the genre with new studio Playtonic. Alex Calvin speaks to studio head Gavin Price

uring the ‘90s and very early ‘00s, one studio was defining the childhood of many a young gamer. The developer in question was Rare, the creative force behind colourful platformers including Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country and Conker’s Bad Fur Day, as well as classic shooters GoldenEye and Perfect Dark. Yet in recent years the firm has decreased its output, and focused on more casual gaming fare – such as Kinect Sports. But now a group of former employees have gathered to form a new studio, Playtonic Games, and are dead set on producing the quality 3D platformers that Rare was known for during its heyday. “We’ve decided to get back to making games how we used to,” studio head Gavin Price says. “We have loads of pent-up passion to go back and make those types of games. The studio is here to serve that passion. It’s a lot more informal and relaxed – like it used to be. Even though we were working on big titles back in the day at Rare, it never felt like the pressures of modern triple-A development. It was a few really energetic people sharing ideas for a game, then getting together and making it. Hopefully it’ll turn out well.” The studio is currently working on a game known as Project Ukelele, said to be a spiritual successor to Rare’s Banjo Kazooie. The genre has fallen by the wayside somewhat in recent years, but Playtonic is confident that there is still an appetite among gamers. “Tastes just change and evolve. We have always looked back at the Banjo-

April 17th 2015

Project Ukulele will be a return to the 3D platforming games of old

Kazooie games and thought they still hold up pretty well,” Price says. “It just seems to be that new genres come in. The genre of choice at the moment seems to be the first person shooter. Back in the SNES era, everything was a 2D sidescrolling platformer. “I have no idea why 3D platformers fell out of fashion. Nintendo has been doing some really good ones – they’ve been flying the flag in that space for a while now. We’ve realised that fans really do still want this type of game.”

We’ve realised that fans really do still want 3D platforming games. Gavin Price, Playtonic Games

THE CROWD GOES WILD Playtonic planned to finance the development of Ukulele itself. But the fervent player response to the reveal of the game convinced the studio to crowdfund the title in order to make it bigger and better. “We were really happy to come out and announce it ourselves, have a plan to make the game we want to make and be happy like that,” Price explains. “But we’ve had such an amazing response it makes us think we can really take the whole thing to the next level.”

Playtonic has further ambitions for the game. In fact, it has aspirations to produce an entire universe around Project Ukelele, with side-characters getting their own titles over time. “People will have met the stars of our future games already by playing Ukelele,” says Price. “Everyone in Ukelele can come back in each other’s games in new roles. Characters you thought were bad in one game can return as good guys in others. We want to create a good, fun universe. There might be games which have huge character rosters and competitive multiplayer.” LIFE AT MICROSOFT Playtonic is playing on the nostalgia some fans have for the games Rare developed back in the late 1990s. Since Rare was acquired by Microsoft, the studio’s output has reduced and, recently, the firm has moved away from the sort of titles that made it famous. But Price says it wasn’t the purchase by Microsoft that forced Rare to change, but rather the industry at large. “It remained very much the same as it ever was,” he explains. “The only thing that really changed over the years was the triple-A industry in general; team sizes were getting larger and Rare was always the same size, but we always had multiple teams and games. The projects we were doing ended up soaking up more and more people. “Rare naturally evolved into producing fewer games. You need a company of 100 or so, and sometimes external companies helping out, to deliver triple-A titles.” He concludes: “Nothing changed. It was more the industry demanding bigger games.”

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MARKETPLACE

SHELF LIFE Alan Davidson of Halifax’s Gamesave explains why he is stocking more Games Workshop models, is considering moving out of video games altogether and is now mainly selling pre-owned content How has business been recently? Up and down. We are doing more now on Games Workshop than we are on games. We are considering leaving games altogether. What games are selling well? The consoles are doing okay. The PS4 and Xbox One are still doing alright. And Battleﬁeld Hardline and Bloodborne both sold pretty well. We are sticking more to pre-owned games now though. We lose far too much money to new releases.

PRE-ORDER CHARTS

cost and say they’ll wait for the price to drop or to buy it preowned. That’s what we are up against all the time.

Why’s that? We get new games in and try and compete with the likes of GAME and Tesco and you end up losing money. Games end up sitting on shelves for weeks and their value drops considerably. We are tending to steer away from new releases.

70 per cent of our revenue comes from Games Workshop stock. We may phase games out over time.

You said you are selling a lot of Games Workshop goods. What is your revenue split between that and video games? These days 70 per cent of our revenue is from Games Workshop stock. We’re expanding into miniatures and table-top gaming – Dungeons and Dragons and the

Would you want more pre-order content to help drive Week One sales like the chains? Not really. A lot of people come in and see how much new games

Alan Davidson, Gamesave

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MARKETPLACE

Gamesave 35 Southgate, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX1 1DL

like. We’re moving into that and may phase games out over time. Do you do many events for the Games Workshop range? We support a few of the local clubs that do Games Workshop tournaments. We’re getting a bit disillusioned with the whole games industry to be honest. Why is that? We’ve sold games since 1998. Back then releases had hours

Phone: 01422 361 414

and days, even weeks of gameplay. Now they last around ﬁve hours on average – which a lot of people complain about – because a lot of the content is only online, and some people don’t go online with games. Also new releases depreciate in value too quickly these days. Many supermarkets and online stores are undercutting everyone so most of the time we end up selling new games at a loss.

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Creative

April 17th Operation Abyss: New Tokyo Legacy

April 30th Teslagrad

Wii U

Platformer

Sodesco

01902 861 527

Pavilion

The Last Tinker City of Colours

PS4/XO

Platformer

Sodesco

01902 861 527

Pavilion

Wii U

Platformer

Nintendo

01753 483 700

Open

Puzzle

Nintendo

01753 483 700

Open

May 8th Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush

Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros Edition 3DS

May 15th Codename S.T.E.A.M

3DS

Strategy

Nintendo

01753 483 700

Open

Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster

PS4

RPG

Square Enix

01216 253 388

CentreSoft

Wolfenstein: The Old Blood

PS4/XO/PC

Shooter

Bethesda

01215 069 590

Advantage

PS4/XO/PC

RPG

Bandai Namco

01215 069 590

Advantage

May 19th The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

May 22nd Hyperdimension Neptunia U: Action Unleashed

Vita

RPG

Idea Factory

020 866 43456

Creative

Steins; Gate

PS3/Vita

RPG

PQube

01216 253 388

CentreSoft

May 29th Space Hulk

PS3/Vita

Action

Funbox Media

01246 810623

Open

Splatoon

Wii U

Shooter

Nintendo

01753 483 700

Open

PS4/XO

MMO

Bethesda

01215 069 590

Advantage

June 9th The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited

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April 17th 2015

FIGHTING GAMES

FIGHTING GAMES The PS4 and Xbox One are set for a royal rumble this year, as iconic ﬁghting game franchises make a return on the new systems. Matthew Jarvis prepares to do battle

THE next 12 months see a number of fighting game champions return to the arena – including big-hitters such as Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat and Tekken. Street Fighter is Capcom’s second-best-selling franchise to date, having sold more than 35 million units by 2014. According to Guinness World Records, an additional 500,000 arcade cabinets featuring games in the series have been sold, which have together generated over $1 billion in revenue.

Mortal Kombat has been named by Guinness World Records as the most successful ﬁghting game series of all time.

Notorious for its visceral finishing moves, Mortal Kombat was named by Guinness World Records as the most successful fighting game series of all time in 2011, with an additional ten world records held by the franchise at the time. Over 32.5 million units in the series have been sold. However, it has been overtaken by Street Fighter and Tekken, the latter of which is the best-selling fighting game property of all time with 41 million sales.

VENOM ARCADE STICK FOR PS3 AND PS4 Players can switch this ﬁghting stick between PS3 and PS4 compatibility thanks to its dual-format design. The joystick is built around a steel shaft micro-switched stick, giving it an arcade machine level of responsiveness. It has an ergonomic layout, and an appearance that is designed to complement the aesthetics of the PlayStation consoles. Eight buttons – with turbo functions – and the PS4 Share Button are included. RRP: £69.99 Manufacturer: Venom Distributor: Venom Contact: 01763 284 181

MORTAL KOMBAT CHOOSE YOUR FIGHTER MUG

STREET FIGHTER ZANGIEF WRESTLING RED T-SHIRT

TEKKEN JUN KAZAMA STATUE

This mug features the klassic roster of past Mortal Kombat titles.

This vibrant shirt stars the fan-favourite wrestling combatant from the Street Fighter series.

From her ﬁrst appearance in Tekken 2, Jun Kazama has remained a popular fan choice. This 21cm statue is for them.

SRP: £7.99 Manufacturer: Pyramid International Distributor: Pyramid International Contact: 0116 284 3645

SRP: £20 Manufacturer: Echo3 Distributor: Echo3 Contact: sales@streetﬁghteroﬃcial.com

SRP: £54.99 Manufacturer: Kotobukiya Distributor: Degica UK Contact: +33 1 55 17 16 56

April 17th 2015

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FIGHTING GAMES

DIRECTORY

MCV DIRECTORY KEY CONTACTS Sony DADC ............................................ +44 (0) 207 462 6200

CREATIVE Fink ................................................................. info@ﬁnkcreative.com

GAMING ACCESSORIES DISC REPAIR

L3I............................................................................+ (0)1923 471 020

Total Disc Repair ..................................+44 (0) 1202 489500

Venom ............................................................... +44 (0)1763 284181

DISTRIBUTION Click Entertainment ............................ +44 (0) 203 137 3781 Creative Distribution ......................+44 (0) 20 8664 3456 RATES

Curveball Leisure ................................... +44 (0) 1792 652521

£70 per two column box (100mm x 75mm). To run weekly for a minimum of 1 year. Please phone for other size and/or position requirements.

Enarxis Dynamic Media ............................. +302 1090 11900

DISC REPAIR

TOTAL DISC REPAIR

Tel: +44 (0) 1202 489500

April 17th 2015

Web: www.totaldiscrepair.co.uk

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DIRECTORY

ENQUIRIES CONOR TALLON Tel: 01992 535647 ctallon@nbmedia.com

FINK

CREATIVE

DISTRIBUTION

CLICK ENTERTAINMENT

Artworking Mastertronic Brand Identity Ukie Localisation Rising Star Games Advertising BBFC Website Design Deep Silver Exhibition Bethesda Illustration Just Flight Appynation Digital Media IntentMedia Charity GamesAid Banners & Takeovers Konami Packaging Design Just Flight Email: info@ﬁnkcreative.com CREATIVE DISTRIBUTION

Tel: +44 (0) 208 6643456 ENARXIS DYNAMIC MEDIA

Web: www.ﬁnkcreative.com

Tel: +44 (0)203 137 3781

DISTRIBUTION

email: sales@click-entertainment.com

CURVEBALL LEISURE

Web: www.creativedistribution.co.uk

Tel: +44 (0) 1792 652521

DISTRIBUTION

SONY DADC

DISTRIBUTION

Web: www.curveball-leisure.com DISTRIBUTION

Empowering your creative business

Tel: +44 207 462 6200 games@sonydadc.com

www.sonydadc.com Tel: +302 1090 11900

www.mcvuk.com

Web: www.enarxis.eu

Tel: +44 (0) 207 462 6200

Web: www.sonydadc.com

April 17th 2015

DIRECTORY

GAMING ACCESSORIES

L3I

GAMING ACCESSORIES

VENOM

New officially licensed products

Vibration Stereo Gaming Headset Vibration technology for immersive gaming

Tel: + (0)1923 471 020

Web: www.logic3.com

ADVERTISE WITH US “

WANT TO ADVERTISE IN OUR DIRECTORY?

Web: www.venomuk.com Phone: +44 (0)1763 284181 Email: darren.scott@venomuk.com sam.phipps@venomuk.com tom.hodge@venomuk.com

CALL CONOR TALLON ON 01992 535647 OR EMAIL HIM AT CTALLON@NBMEDIA.COM

Tel: +44 (0)1763 284181 April 17th 2015

Venom UK Gaming @VenomGamingUK

w w w. v e n o m u k . c o m

Web: www.venomuk.com www.mcvuk.com

INSIDER’S GUIDE

INSIDER’S GUIDE PDP

DIRECTORY

WHO? Specialism: Accessories and peripherals Location: Siena Court, Broadway, Maidenhead, SL6 1NJ

Develop is the only dedicated publication for the UK and European games development community. It reaches over 8,500 subscribers every month.

Dave Nelson, UK sales manager for PDP, talks about the accessories specialist’s upcoming PC range

FOR GREAT ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES, CONTACT ALEX BOUCHER ABOUCHER@NBMEDIA.COM

Tell us about your company. Performance Designed Products is an industry leader in designing and manufacturing peripherals and accessories for all legacy and next-gen consoles, as well as handhelds and the emerging toys-to-life category. PDP has successfully entered into new consumer electronics accessory markets, leveraging its core licensed partners such as Disney and Nintendo with a comprehensive range of accessories for smartphones.

THIS MONTH’S DIRECTORY SPOTLIGHT: Epic Games .................................................. www.epicgames.com/careers

What is your biggest success to date? After another record year of growth for PDP, both UK and globally, there are many standout successes. If I were to select one, it would be our partnership with Microsoft on launching our range of Xbox One accessories including our Karga headset and Rock Candy controllers. What projects do you currently have in the works? In Q3 of this year PDP is launching a brand new range of Rock Candy accessories for PC. What are the biggest challenges you face? One of the biggest challenges this year will be to strike the right balance of forecasting accessories for both legacy and next-gen. Whilst next-gen is still in its relative infancy, there are still over 14 million legacy consoles in the UK, which will To be included in the Develop Directory (which appears every month in Develop and now every week in MCV) contact aboucher@nbmedia.com

There are still over 14m legacy consoles in the UK, which will still have a high demand for accessories. still have a high demand for accessories. It sounds simple enough but, when you need to forecast months out in advance, it’s a challenge to make sure you get it right to maximise the opportunity for peak. Tell us something about your company no one knows. Our new oﬃces in Burbank are in the same building as the Playboy headquarters. How did you choose your company name? Performance Designed Products are what we do. Simple as that.

WANT TO FEATURE YOUR COMPANY IN INSIDER’S GUIDE? PLEASE CONTACT MJARVIS@NBMEDIA.COM OR CALL 01992 515 303

WWW.DEVELOP-ONLINE.NET www.mcvuk.com

Contact: P: 01628 509 047 W: www.pdp.com E: europesales@pdp.com T: @pdpgaming

April 17th 2015

FACTFILE ISRAEL Sponsored by

INTERNATIONAL FACTFILE: ISRAEL Population: 8,238,300 Capital City: Jerusalem Currency: New Shekel GDP (Per Capita): $38,004 KEY RETAILERS BUG, Olsale, Hameir, VGS Games, KSP Group, MediaGame, Toys R Us KEY DISTRIBUTORS Edlee Entertainment, Oberson Media, Matomy Media Group, Benda Magnetic ISFAR, Hed Arzi Music

DIGITAL is thriving in Israel, with few specialist retail outlets present. Games are primarily sold either by very small independent retailers or general stores. This is due to the ease of accessing download services such as Steam. This has, in turn, led to a dearth of distribution firms, with just three – EdLee Entertainment, SFAR and Hed Arzi – serving as the inlet to the region for the big publishers such as Sony, EA, Ubisoft and Activision. According to market research firm NewZoo, Israel’s games industry saw revenue of an estimated $47.9 million (£32.4m) in 2014. Meanwhile, the Israeli Ministry of Economy believes that the local games market could be worth up to $730 million (£493m). The local government has begun to invest in the country’s video games sector, inviting

TOP DEVELOPERS Funtactix, Tabtale, Side-Kick, Corbomite Games, Nitako, Playful Shark, Playtika, Space Cowboys, We Create Stuﬀ, Nordau Creative, eMaginarium, SpikySnail, Plarium

10 Israeli games outlets to the American event Casual Connect last year in an effort to promote Israel’s games output. The Ministry of Economy estimates that around 3,000 people are currently employed in the games industry in Israel. Nonprofit organisation GameIS adds that around $300 million (£203m) in revenue is generated by mobile and social titles created in Israel alone. Israeli firms are making waves in other areas of the industry. Cloud gaming platform Playcast, which is based in Caesarea, partnered with Korean electronics manufacturer Samsung earlier this year. Under the agreement, Playcast’s technology will allow users to stream console titles from the likes of EA, Bandai Namco, Disney, Sega, Square Enix and Konami directly to their smart TVs.

The Ministry of Economy believes the Israeli games market could be worth up to $730m.

April 17th 2015

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ISRAEL FACTFILE

MEANWHILE IN... CRIMEA Gamers are unable to play World of Warcraft, Hearthstone and Diablo following Blizzard’s decision to pull Battle.net access from the region US sanctions have resulted in Crimean PC gamers being left unable to play some Blizzard titles, after the publisher revoked access to its Battle.net service in the region. The withdrawal of the network was reportedly made in order to comply with rules relating to Crimea’s revolution and subsequent Russian annexation in 2014. The blockage was implemented in line with the Oﬃce of Foreign Assets Control’s Executive Order 13685, eﬀective as of December 19th, prohibiting the sale or supply of any ‘goods, services, or technology’ to Crimea.

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Among the titles aﬀected are World of Warcraft, Hearthstone and Diablo III. Blizzard contacted users in the country to notify them and conﬁrm that they would not

be billed for any recurring subscriptions. However, some gamers have already found a number of ways to bypass the restriction.

April 17th 2015

TERRITORY REPORT BALKANS Sponsored by

TERRITORY REPORT: BALKANS The Balkan games market continues to struggle with higher-than-average product pricing in a region that has lower-than-average consumer income. Matthew Jarvis takes a look

he Balkan games market has found itself stuck in a rut, unable to keep pace with much of the global industry thanks to high pricing and a lack of disposable consumer income. The Balkan region is hard to define due to its inclusion of countries that lie partially within the territory, such as Slovenia, Italy and Turkey. However, according to the latest national games market revenue estimated by industry tracker Newzoo, the combined games revenue of the entire region (including those countries only partially located in the territory) was $2.7 billion (£1.8bn) during 2014. This falls to $209 million (£141.4m) when only countries fully located inside the Balkans region are counted – the dramatic fall is primarily due to the removal of Italy, which alone saw revenue of $1.5 billion (£1bn) last year. Out of those countries

exclusively located in the Balkans, Greece is by far the most prosperous in terms of video games, with its industry generating $79.7 million in revenue during 2014. Serbia is the second-most successful, seeing revenue of $46.3 million last year. However, Greece’s market pales in comparison to much of the rest of the world. Newzoo places it as the 51st-biggest games market globally, behind developing industries such as Nigeria, Indonesia, New Zealand and the Czech Republic. The potential for the local games market to grow has been hampered in recent years by the country’s on-going financial crisis.

Boxed games in Greece are priced at €70 (£58) – around 10 per cent of the average monthly net income in the country.

PURCHASING POWER FAILURE The struggle to establish a video games market in the Balkan territory may be due to the region’s overall economic situation when compared with the rest of Europe. The Economist reports that the average monthly salary in countries such as Montenegro and Serbia is between €300 (£218) to €500 (£363), totalling around €4,800 (£3,490) annually. In comparison, the High Pay Centre calculated that the average annual wage in the UK is £26,500 – almost eight times higher. Additionally, Albania and Bosnia have the lowest GDP per capita in Europe, according to a study of 37 countries by European research agency Eurostat. The firm adds that Bulgaria is the EU’s poorest country. Nearly every territory in the Balkans has a far lower GDP than the rest of Europe, with Albania’s GDP just 28 per cent of the EU average.

BALKANS TERRITORY REPORT

Due to this disparity between the economic landscape in the Balkans and that of Western Europe, it is easier to understand why luxury items such as video games have struggled to find mainstream success. This also hasn’t been helped by the high cost of titles that have launched in the region. Boxed games in Greece are priced at around €70 (£58) – a serious investment given that it’s around 10 per cent of the average monthly net income in the country. FIND A WAY AROUND The expensive barrier to entry has resulted in many players adopting other methods to obtain games. Grey importing of video games has thrived in the Balkans, with consumers turning to companies outside of the territory – such as Amazon and other online outlets in the UK – to dodge the prices imposed by local retailers. However, some players are deciding to pay nothing at all – in Slovenia, for example, nearly half of all software is pirated, according to the BSA Global Software Survey. This proportion of illegal software is dropping slowly, however, as digital retail grows in popularity. 71 per cent of Slovenia’s population regularly browses the web, a statistic not far from the UK’s own 73 per cent of web users. This makes the region – and its neighbours – ripe for digital retail.

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THE FACTS INFO Countries: Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Serbia, Romania (Partial), Italy (Partial), Slovenia (Partial), Turkey (Partial), Croatia (Partial)

£141.4m

Largest Cities: Istanbul (Turkey), Belgrade (Serbia), Sofia (Bulgaria), Thessaloniki (Greece), Zagreb (Croatia), Athens (Greece)

The Balkan games market generated £141.4m in revenue during 2014

Population: 132.4m Average GDP (Per Capita, excluding partial countries): $7,948 Languages: Bulgarian, Bosnian, Croatian, Macdonian, Montenegrin, Serbian, Solvene, Italian, Romanian, Venetian, Albanian, Greek, Turkish

Currency: Euro, plus local currencies for each region TOP DISTRIBUTORS Zegatron, CD Media, Bandai Namco, IGE, Nortec, Enarxis, Beacon, Colby, Videotop KEY RETAILERS Media Markt, Public/Multirama, Plaisio, Germanos, Seven, Kotsovolos, Big Bang, Comshop, E.Leclerc, Harvey Norman, Muller TOP DEVELOPERS Total Eclipse, Aventurine, Eyelead, Games2Gaze, JustAGame, Sidebar, Flipped Horizons, Zootfly, ActaLogic, Dawn of Play, Cocoasoft, Croteam

April 17th 2015

INTERNATIONAL DISTRIBUTION Sponsored by

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTORS IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR NEW PARTNERS OVERSEAS, THEN LOOK NO FURTHER

BELGIUM

CLD DISTRIBUTION Rue du Grand Champs 14 , B 5380 Fernelmont Belgium Tel: +32 81 83 02 02 Fax: +32 81 83 02 09 Email: infos@cld.be Web: www.cld.be home of www.dragonwar.eu & www.mawashi.eu

BRAZIL Sony Music Entertainment Brasil # 1 Physical Distributor in Brazil Rua Lauro Muller n°. 116 – 40°. Andar Salas 4001 a 4003 Botafogo Rio de Janeiro RJ CEP. 22.290-160 Tel. +55 21 2128-0771 Fax: +55 21 2128-0747 Email : rodrigo.altieri@sonymusic.com Website: www.sonymusic.com.br

CYPRUS

G3 GREAT GAMES LTD 4 Gregoriou Papaﬂessa Street, Oﬃce 101, Engomi, Nicosia 2414, Cyprus. Tel: +357 22 666612 Web: www.greatgames.com.cy

IRAN

SWEDEN

DC GAMES GROUP No.9, Hemmatian St., Takestan St., Sattarkhan Tehran, Iran Tel: +98-912-1014090 +98-21-44228670 Email: Bahizad@Doostan-Co.com Web: www.Doostan-Co.com

GAME OUTLET EUROPE AB PO Box 5083, S-650 05 Karlstad, Sweden Sales dept: ali.manzuri@gameoutlet.se Sales dept: andreas.lindberg@gameoutlet.se Purchase dept: hamed.manzuri@gameoutlet.se Purchase dept: david.nilsson@gameoutlet.se Web: www.gameoutlet.se

NETHERLANDS

UAE

SOEDESCO B.V. Koddeweg 13, 3194 DH Rotterdam The Netherlands Tel: +31 104722462 Fax: +31 104722893 Email: info@soedesco.com Web: www.soedesco.com

ALESAYI UNITED COMPANY Video Games Distributor in the Middle East, P.O BOX 16999 Jebel Ali Free Zone Dubai U.A.E. Tel: 00971 4 883 5960 Fax: 00971 4 883 5175 Email: marketing@alesayi.ae U.A.E. Website: www.alesayi.ae Group Website: www.alesayi.com

NORDIC WENDROS AB SWEDEN, NORWAY, DENMARK & FINLAND Jakobsdalsvägen 17 12653 Hägersten Sweden Phone: +46 8 51942500 Fax: +46 8 7466790 Email: HM@wendros.se LM@wendros.se Web: www.wendros.se

MCV WORLDWIDE Editorial: + 61 (0)424 967 263 Leigh.Harris@mcvpaciﬁc.com

Advertising: + 61 (0)417 084821 Joel.Vandaal@mcvpaciﬁc.com

WWW.MCVPACIFIC.COM

MORE DISTRIBUTORS AUSTRALIA AFA Interactive, Bluemouth Interactive, Five Star Games, Mindscape, Namco Bandai Partners, Turn Left Distribution BENELUX CLD Distribution, Koch Media, Gameworld Distribution B.V. CANADA E One, Importel, Just4Games, Solutions 2 Go, Vidéoglobe CYPRUS Access, Gibareio, Zilos, Nortec Multimedia CZECH REPUBLIC Cenega, Conquest, Comgad, Playman, ABC Data DENMARK Bergsala, Elpa, Impulse, Koch Media, Nordisk Film Interactive, Nordic Game Supply, PAN Vision FRANCE Big Ben, Innelec, Koch Media, SDO, Sodifa GREECE Zegatron, CD Media, Namco Bandai Partners, IGE, Nortec, Enarxis, Beacon HUNGARY CNG.hu/Cenega Hungary, CTC Trading, Magnew, PlayON, Stadlbauer ICELAND Sena, Myndform, Samfilm, Ormsson INDONESIA Maxsoft, Uptron, Technosolution IRELAND MSE Group, Baumex JAPAN Ajioka, Happinet, Jesnet NORWAY Bergsala, Game Outlet, Koch Media, Nordic Game Supply, Nordisk Film, Pan Vision POLAND CD Projekt, Cenega, Galapagos, LEM PORTUGAL Ecoplay, Infocapital, Koch Media, Namco Bandai ROMANIA Best Distribution SERBIA ComTrade, Computerland/Iris Mega, Extreme CC SPAIN Digital Bros, Koch Media, Namco Bandai Partners, Nobilis SWEDEN Bergsala, Koch Media, Namco Bandai, Nordic Game Supply, PAN Vision, Wendros, Ztorm (digital) UAE Red Entertainment Distribution, Pluto Games (LS2 Pluto), Viva Entertainment, Gameplay Entertainment, Geekay Distribution

TO ADVERTISE IN THIS SECTION PLEASE CONTACT CTALLON@NBMEDIA.COM April 17th 2015

www.mcvuk.com

OFF THE RECORD

OFF THE RECORD This week, Mortal Kombat pits the press against each other, Insomnia 54 breaks another record for Multiplay and we take a trip back in time to the ﬁrst-ever MCV Awards GET OVER HERE Warner Bros threw a tournament at London’s DSTRKT club this week to celebrate the launch of Mortal Kombat X. Presented by Explosive Alan Productions’ Dan Maher and pro-gamer Ryan Hart, 16 of the biggest MK fans among the press took part, with Play magazine’s Luke Albiges taking ﬁrst place. Celebrities in attendance included former X Factor contestant Derry Mensah, TOWIE’s Ricky Rayment and footballer Adebayo Akinfenwa. The party also featured a six-foot ice sculpture of kombatant Sub Zero, Mortal Kombat kup kakes and kustom-built Mortal Kombat arkade kabinets. (Krazy.)

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

WANT TO WIN A BRAND NEW XBOX ONE? WIN GREAT PRIZES BY TAKING PART IN MCV’S #ALLFORONE COMPETITION XBOX has teamed up with MCV to run a series of new weekly challenges. Every Friday, Xbox will test gamers and pose key questions based around upcoming events. Just for industry folk and retailers, there’s a way to take part via MCV which could win you some fantastic prizes. Here’s how it works: every week, MCV will print a challenge on this page. You simply need to show us your answer - tweet it to us, email us or post on our other social feeds.

MCV XBOX CHALLENGE NO.3:

HOW TO ENTER

SUNSET SKILLS SUPREMACY Sunset Overdrive’s new add-on Dawn of the Rise of the Fallen Machines has arrived – and we’re giving away an Xbox One to celebrate. All you’ve got to do to is jump in-game and beat Insomniac’s high score of 534,080 on the challenge ‘Buck’s Revenge’. This will nab you the ‘I Should Get Paid For This’ achievement – then just send us proof of the unlock (see right). So, go on – show us your skills and you could win a new Xbox One.

WIN!

O Tweet us with a picture or

video of your entry (if relevant) to @MCVonline - don’t forget to use #AllForOne with your entry. Make sure you use both! O You can also send entries to oﬀtherecord@nbmedia.com - use #AllForOne in the subject O Alternatively tell us via Facebook - you can ﬁnd us at facebook.com/MCVonline O Deadline for entries is 5pm on Monday, April 20th

HAVE YOU ENTERED ANY OF OUR PAST CHALLENGES? STAY TUNED – THE FIRST WINNERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON www.mcvuk.com

April 17th 2015

OFF THE RECORD

CRIME PAYS EA crowned the winner of its BattleďŹ eld Hardline Live event last week, with the lucky individual having successfully led their crew through a series of challenges. Matt Kerr from Preston embraced his criminal side, rescuing a VIP, exploring a vault, dodging patrolling guards and ďŹ nally making his escape. His team, Usual Suspects, achieved the highest poundsper-minute (loot taken divided by time taken) earnings, netting ÂŁ542,750 a minute and the competitionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s top spot. Kerr was awarded with ÂŁ10,000 in real tender, collecting his prize at GAME Preston Deepdale.

UP ALL DAY Newly GAME-owned eSports specialist Multiplay held its biggest Insomnia event to date earlier this month. Insomnia 54 saw more than 30,000 visitors ďŹ&#x201A;ock to Ricoh Arena in Coventry, attracted by a new dedicated eSports stage and broadcast studio which joined the returning main stage. Exhibitors showing oďŹ&#x20AC; their latest titles included Sony XDex, Jagex, Warner Bros and Stainless Games. The event saw coverage online, amassing over 11 million YouTube views and two million Flickr uploads, as well as inclusion in a segment on the BBCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s The One Show.

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April 17th 2015

Bacon Avenger @bacon_avenger

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OFF THE RECORD

FROM THE ARCHIVE: MCV 232, APRIL 18TH 2003

MCV AWARDS SPECIAL In honour of this week’s MCV Awards, we decided to take a trip back in time to the inaugural celebration of the games industry. Taking place at The Brewery in London on April 17th 2003, the event was hosted by the BBC’s very own Jeremy Vine. Big winners on the night included specialist retailer of the year GAME, general entertainment retailer of the year Woolworths, top trade marketing team Microsoft, best (joint) sales team Gem and Microsoft, and Microsoft UK boss Chris Lewis, who picked up the ﬁrst-ever Grand Prix prize. But, naturally, you don’t really care who won ten years ago – you care what they wore and what their hair looked like. Indulge yourself and take a look...

THE WEEK IN 140 CHARACTERS The Tweets you might have missed in the last seven days @dannyodwyer New Rainbow Six shooter in Alpha, and a new Deus Ex game is leaked. Is it the year 2000 again?

@apacheknowledge I would pay £350 for all that LEGO Dimensions shit. I would ﬁght children to own it all, too.

Danny O’Dwyer, GameSpot Tuesday April 7th

Robbie Paterson, Indigo Pearl Thursday April 9th

@PaulTassi Thank God, the Deus Ex announcement isn’t just another remaster. Actual sequels for next gen! It’s happening!

@VG_Dave Black Ops 3 sounds like Call of Duty: Robocop and OMG I don’t know what to think.

Paul Tassi, Forbes Tuesday April 7th

David Scammell, Videogamer.com Thursday April 9th

@WB_Games_UK The world’s biggest ﬁghting game franchise debuts on mobile, with Mortal Kombat X.

@GAMEBlueMall With #LEGODimensions due soon, LEGO games are getting BIG. There’s only one way to go from here. Two words: LEGO FIFA.

WB Games UK Wednesday April 8th

GAME Metrocentre Thursday April 9th

@Capcom_UK @WB_Games_UK *cough*

@Omac_brother “No lad. No more game toys. You never play with Skylanders as it is”. #LEGODimensions is announced. “Oh Yes Son. We are getting that.”

Capcom UK Wednesday April 8th

Sean Davies, PSGamer Thursday April 9th

@BandaiNamcoUK @Capcom_UK @WB_Games_UK Awkward... vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/Best_selling_game_franchises

@olliecoe Completed my move from PR to brand management. Really going to miss working with the press but very excited for the year ahead! :)

Bandai Namco UK Wednesday April 8th

www.mcvuk.com

Ollie Coe, Ubisoft UK Monday April 13th

April 17th 2015