MCV 867 February 26th 2016 by Biz Media Ltd

GAMES MEDIA

SPECIAL

THE BUSINESS OF VIDEO GAMES ISSUE 867 FRIDAY FEBRUARY 26TH 2016

MCV TALKS TO TWITCH, IGN, YOGSCAST AND MORE

While we’re a lot closer to our goal than we ever have been, it still remains a work in progress.” Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick tells MCV that the Grand Theft Auto publisher is edging ever closer to smoothing out those revenue spikes and making every year consistently huge. FULL INTERVIEW ON PAGE 2

“2015 was harder than we forecasted, but we feel we’re going to have our best year ever in 2016.” Ubisoft UK bosses tell MCV that a lack of a mainline Assassin’s Creed this year won’t hold it back from record-breaking success, and how The Division could set a new standard for Q1 sales performance. FULL INTERVIEW ON PAGE 4M

I was always secretly hopeful that we could push Official PlayStation Magazine further.” The PS4 is selling so well it’s even helping print media, with OPM editor Matthew Pellett telling MCV how the magazine RAISED its circulation last year. FULL INTERVIEW ON PAGE 6

PLUS UK JANUARY CHARTS THE IMPACT OF AD BLOCKING

INTERVIEW STRAUSS ZELNICK. TAKE-TWO

Take-Two’s work in progress After an unusually quiet 2015, Take-Two heads into this year with returning blockbusters, niche classics, new IP and plans for global domination. Christopher Dring discusses all this with CEO Strauss Zelnick

015 was not a big year for Take-Two. There was multiplayer shooter Evolve in February, GTA V was released on PC in April and, of course, the annual big hitters of NBA and WWE. But outside of that, it was an unusually quiet year for the publisher. And that’s a frustration for CEO Strauss Zelnick. The business is close to showing the level of consistency that has served EA, Activision and Ubisoft so well. From BioShock and Borderlands to GTA and Red Dead Redemption, Take-Two now has numerous blockbuster franchises to sit alongside its annual NBA and WWE games. But not last year. “You are being very polite. Our holiday season last financial year was much more robust than our holiday season this year,” Zelnick tells us. “We aim to get to a point where our release schedule is strong every year. It is gratifying to be able to withstand and overcome ups and downs in the release schedule. But make no mistake about it, we’re utterly focused on bringing extraordinary franchises, plus new IP, to market on a regular basis, so that we have an interesting and diverse and powerful line-up year-in year-out. While we are a lot closer to that goal than we ever have been, it still remains a bit of a work-inprogress.” CRYSTAL BALL Zelnick reminds us that Take-Two is an entertainment company, and like all creative businesses, things are never certain. Games get delayed, or even cancelled, and not everything works out all the

February 26th 2016

time. He wants to tell us that there won’t be any more fallow years, but he just doesn’t know. Not that it seems to matter, at least not according to the company’s financial reports: the phrase ‘better than expected results’ has been pretty much the catchphrase to the company’s financial year. That’s down to Grand Theft Auto Online. The multiplayer mode to GTA V has consistently surprised Take-Two, and proven to be a headache for whoever is in charge

Zelnick likes to remind everyone who will listen that Take-Two isn’t just ‘the GTA company’. But with 60m copies of Rockstar’s game sold into stores, you can understand the thinking. A Rockstar game is noticeably missing from the firm’s current release slate, but 2016 is nonetheless a far stronger year for the firm. It has just launched XCOM 2, which has gained impressive review scores and has performed strongly with the PC strategy audience. Then there’s

eSports is really just been a commercial opportunity for League of Legends, and not much for anyone else. Strauss Zelnick, Take-Two

Battleborn, a new multiplayer IP from Borderlands creator Gearbox, which is scheduled for May 3rd. Finally, Mafia III is due sometime during 2016, and is from new studio Hangar 13, a team led by Star Wars writer Haden Blackman.

of the company’s projections. “We’ve made no mystery of the fact that Grand Theft Auto Online continues to exceed expectations, and this holiday season was the best period ever, in terms of active users, consumer spending and the revenue from concurrent consumer spending. And that has a positive impact on our results,” explains Zelnick. “But we have other good results, as well. NBA 2K16 looks like it will be the most successful release in the history of the franchise. It has sold in over 6m units. We have also had a great result with WWE 2K16 and with Civilization. And of course with our catalogue sales, which is led by a number of titles, including Borderlands. “So the good news is pretty much across the board.”

EYEING UP ESPORTS But there’s more to Take-Two’s 2016 strategy than just releasing big games. The firm announced earlier this month a $250,000 eSports event for its NBA 2K16 franchise. It was news that came as a surprise to MCV. When we spoke to Zelnick in October, he told us that although eSports has PR and marketing benefits, he didn’t view it as a commercial opportunity. And his position hasn’t changed.

“It’s really just been a commercial opportunity for League of Legends, and not much for anyone else,” he says. “We and everyone else is going: ‘Consumers love this, so is there a way to do something that supports the marketing of our titles, but will also engage consumers to create revenue and profit.’ “So we are starting with our own tournament, which is based around a series of in-game events in NBA 2K16 and that will lead to a $250,000 grand prize tournament and a trip to the NBA finals. “It remains to be seen how that will work. It is our first foray and I think it will prove very interesting if nothing else, and most significantly we think it will delight consumers. And that’s the thing, if you delight consumers, the revenue and profitability will take care of itself.” But what about launching its own eSports division, much like EA and Activision have? “We tend to focus more on the activity rather than the organisational structure,” explains Zelnick, adding: “I suppose, we could have said we are launching an eSports division and its first activity is this in-game tournament for NBA 2K 16. But that’s not how we do things.” With a number of new games, plus its eSports plans, 2016 is shaping up to be a far busier year for the teams at Take-Two. But could there be more? What about Red Dead Redemption 2? Or Ken Levine’s new project? Zelnick is tight lipped, but points towards E3 as an event to look forward to. “We will be there in a big way,” he concludes.

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TAKE-TWO. STRAUSS ZELNICK INTERVIEW

GLOBAL TAKEDOWN AN area of Take-Two’s business that is frequently talked about during its financial calls is its move into Asia, specifically the Chinese and Korean markets. Western businesses trying to crack the East is nothing new, and there are countless examples of major publishers trying and failing to do so. So what makes TakeTwo so different? “We have an Asian headquarters in Singapore and we are a publisher in Japan, which has served us very well, we have seen our sales increase dramatically by becoming a publisher there,” Take-Two CEO Zelnick explains. “Like our competitors, we have entered the Chinese market with our console titles. And we have the No.1 PC sports online game in China with NBA 2K Online, in December we had a record number of concurrent users of nearly 1.4m. We have made a big push into Asia, which we have done so judiciously. We have great partners in Tencent, XL and others, and we are cautiously optimistic about Civilization Online, although it is early to call it. “That part of the world is very important, and I think China is going to become more and more important, and not just for us but for the industry as a whole.” And Zelnick has his eyes on other new markets, too. “There’s no question that interactive entertainment is still dominated by the very large territories you’re aware of: United States, Japan, United Kingdom. But people love games the world over. And we certainly imagine more and more revenue coming out of Latin America, China, India Africa and other places, and the benefit of having a worldwide distribution footprint, which only a handful of our competitors also have, is that it gives us a distinct competitive advantage as we go to exploit our triple-A titles all around the world. “We tend to be very conservative folks when it comes to spending money, so in terms of having a direct on-the-ground presence, we’ll let a market develop first before we look to introduce that.”

Zelnick hopes to achieve a more consistent release schedule

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February 26th 2016

INTERVIEW UBISOFT

After a tough 2015, Ubisoft thinks 2016 will be its biggest year ever With two massive triple-A releases due in Q1 alone, Ubisoft has started the year all guns blazing. Christopher Dring sits down with the publisher’s senior team to talk about The Division and Far Cry Primal

You slipped down the UK publishing rankings last year. How would you evaluate 2015? Darren Bowen, UK sales director: I think 2015 was a harder year than we forecasted, mainly because for the first time at Ubisoft, many of our triple-A releases came later in our financial year. That’s why 2016 is going to be so exciting. Two triple-A products in this first quarter should really help kick-start what could be our strongest ever year. In 2016 we feel like we’re going to have our biggest ever market share, bigger than 2014, which was a huge year.

The Division is a big new IP launch for 2016. There wasn’t a great deal of big retail new IP in 2015. Was that an anomaly, or is there already signs of caution amongst publishers? Bowen: From a sales perspective it’s really exciting to have new IP. Ubisoft is one of the publishers that works new IP harder than most. I have been fortunate enough to work here for Splinter Cell in 2002, Assassin’s Creed in 2007 and Watch Dogs in 2014. We have made some truly great experiences for consumers. The Division is potentially the most exciting one of the lot. Rob Cooper, UK MD: Ubisoft has a name for producing new IPs, taking calculated risks, all with a real creative flair. This is the way we work as a company – I think you could see that with Watch Dogs and now The Division and we’ll continue this in the future. It’s in our DNA.

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anticipated games of 2016 – we’ve seen from both specialist and mainstream press some great responses in terms of the amount of coverage that the title’s receiving. The sentiment for the product has also been overwhelmingly positive based on the recent preview events in Malmo and New York that we’ve run, but also the up and coming open beta anticipation.

Far Cry Primal is shaking up the ﬁrst person shooter formula

How would you compare The Division with your other major games like Assassin’s Creed, Watch Dogs and Far Cry? Bowen: We’re approaching The Division as one of the biggest titles of the year – we’ve got huge internal ambitions and the feedback that we are getting is that it’s got the potential to be the biggest Q1 title in the history of video games. We think it’ll be a Top Five title for the calendar year and it’ll be another million-seller for the Ubisoft stable of products. The way the hype and the pre-orders are shaping up – we’re on track to hit every one of those ambitions.

Ubisoft has a name for producing new IPs and taking calculated risks. It’s in our DNA. Rob Cooper, Ubisoft

Mark Slaughter, UK marketing director: From a marketing perspective, it’s clear to see that The Division is one of the most

Cooper: It’s a quiet quarter, too. Consumers are ready for something new to challenge them and there’s an advantage that there is very little competition in the Easter period. Retailers are really keen to get behind this especially as they are seeing the pre-orders grow significantly. Slaughter: I’ll just add that the marketing is in line with how we treat our big triple-A new IP releases, so if you compare it to Watch Dogs in terms of scale of campaign, the campaign is as big, if not bigger than that. The Division suffered several delays. Why was it important to push the game back? Cooper: Games these days are very expensive to develop and as a result therefore you can’t take risks with the quality of the game; you have to make sure that game is as perfect as you can possibly make it. How have retail responded to Far Cry and The Division? Bowen: The response from retail has been extremely positive.

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UBISOFT INTERVIEW

(From left to right): UK MD Rob Cooper, UK Sales Director Darren Bowen and UK Marketing Director Mark Slaughter

They’re certainly delighted to have such a strong first quarter. We had a retailer event recently, which was very well-attended which shows a desire to push the market at this difficult time of year. They thought both games looked incredible; even better than they were expecting – and they had huge expectations for both – so there’s a good confidence that this is going to be the sales driver that they need at the start of the year. Q4 is really key for retail and to everybody, which is why there are so many releases but it’s important to have a balanced release schedule as well. Putting in key titles in the first quarter can really help drive sales and drive theatre in store. We’ve got some great pointof-sale on both Far Cry Primal and The Division which retailers are really getting behind so they can dress up the store and drive consumers to get the sales they need – I think we all need to have a balanced portfolio to drive sales all year.

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What they can see is that with Far Cry Primal specifically it’s got the same fun, interesting storyline and setting that it’s always had and it keeps it true to the brand and what’s been successful for it.

Slaughter: We’re very fortunate at Ubisoft to be able to have the opportunity to bring new IP to market, and we’re confident with the marketing campaign that we have. We aim to bring that new IP to market with verve and impact in a targeted way but fundamentally we want to ensure that consumers are not only aware but also want to be a part of the fantasy of the great new IP that we have.

We think The Division has got the potential to be the biggest Q1 title in the history of video games. Darren Bowen, Ubisoft

Bowen: In terms of trade marketing it’s in line, if not exceeding, any of the trade marketing campaigns we’ve done. The timing helps as we can get all the in-store theatre to drive consumers to purchase. Cooper: I just wanted to add how proud we are of the development teams and the work that has gone

into these two games. And our very own Reflections [Studio based in Newcastle], too are playing a key significant role in the development of the game, too. These games are very, very complicated and consumers really have the most incredible entertainment value for money. No other products offer six to 12 months of entertainment like our industry offers. We’re so excited about the future, too. The company is 30 years old this year. Yves [Guillemot, CEO] has always said to me, ‘I plan not to have a global video games company, but a global entertainment company’. That was 16 years ago. Last year we announced our first VR projects as well as a theme park in Malaysia and this year sees the first ever Assassin’s Creed movie starring Michael Fassbender. We also have an extensive portfolio of huge games in the pipeline including Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Wildlands. That dream is becoming a reality.

February 26th 2016

MEDIA SPECIAL MATTHEW PELLETT, OPM

Print is not dead In 2014, Official PlayStation Magazine became the No.1 best-selling games print brand in the UK. But the publication’s team didn’t stop there, and last year it saw a ten per cent rise in print circulation. Alex Calvin speaks to editor Matthew Pellett to see how he did the impossible

t’s a fact as universally recognised as gravity that print is dead. Since the dawn of the internet and the invention of the iPad, the circulation and revenue of nearly every print publication on the planet has fallen like a rock. But last year, Future’s Official PlayStation Magazine’s print circulation actually rose. And not by a tiny amount, either. The mag saw a 9.6 per cent jump to 26,659 average monthly readers. “Getting a rise of any kind in recent years has been tough,” says editor Matthew Pellett. “The last time it happened was back in 2010. We had a really positive year in 2014 when we became the No.1 games magazine for the first time since the PS2 days. PS4 was in such a good place that I was always secretly hopeful that we would be able to push the magazine further.” But the question on everyone’s lips is how Pellett and his team have defied the narrative surrounding print journalism. “The readers are the biggest part of this,” he says. “Without them this would not have happened. And we’re fortunate that the PlayStation

February 26th 2016

community is amazing and the OPM readers have always shown us great support. We’ve shaped the mag around them and what they want.” THE POWER OF PLAYSTATION OPM is of course focused upon PS4, the current leader in the console space with around 36 million units sold worldwide. “Sony has done an incredible job this generation,” Pellett says. “There was naturally some trickle-down from the PS4’s success. It definitely helps that the PS4 is the biggest console of the generation. Its rate of success is better than the PS2, so that definitely played a part.” But the success of the machine can’t be the sole reason for the rise in print circulation, otherwise OPM’s digital numbers would also be increasing (they in fact fell 2.1 per cent). There are undeniable benefits to print. As Pellett points out, you can take the magazine in the bath unlike an iPad or laptop. And there’s a lot more that you can do with some really great art. “I’d definitely challenge the idea that print is dead,” he says. “I don’t agree with that at all. Yes, the numbers haven’t been as good as they were back in the day. The climate has changed and shifted and that’s a natural evolution.”

NO I IN TEAM DURING 2015, OPM saw some line-up changes. The publication hired two staff writers and these journalists have helped develop OPM’s relationship with its audience. “New starters bring their own perspective and [staff writers] Jen Simpkins and Ben Tyrer have really joined the team in the best way possible,” editor Matthew Pellett says. “They have begun talking with readers loads, interacting

with them and starting up gaming sessions. That’s something I always wanted to do, but we couldn’t do it before because we didn’t have time. Now we are able to do things like that. It’s exciting to bring fresh blood into the magazine. “We’ve also brought in some new freelancers as well, so we have a few different faces who are just beginning to emerge in the magazine.”

(Above left to right): Production editor Westbrook, managing art editor Coppock and staﬀ writers Tyrer and Simpkins

MATTHEW PELLETT, OPM MEDIA SPECIAL

At the moment, Pellett says that OPM’s audience features real variety. There are people who have been around since the days of the original PlayStation and some whose first ever console is the PS4. “It’s a big mix and it’s our job to strike a balance and keep everyone happy,” Pellett says “We’ve had a really nice run – Final Fantasy and Ratchet & Clank – some

I’d challenge the idea that print is dead. The numbers aren’t as good as they were, but that’s a natural evolution. Matthew Pellett, Official PlayStation Magazine

real PlayStation heritage covers.. It’s really fun, having to get that different mix of covers and content to keep everyone happy.” Even if print isn’t dying, there’s no denying that this sector has suffered incredible difficulties. The result of the popularity of online news and new media like YouTube has meant

that the magazines which survived are better than ever out of necessity. “Every magazine has to be good to survive. You can’t afford to not be great,” Pellett insists. “If you try and put out a product that isn’t good enough, then you’ll get found out and it just won’t survive. It’s a harsh reality. But that’s great because there’s almost an unspoken guarantee for these people who go out and buy mags, because they know they’re going to get something that’s good. It’s our job to make sure that every single mag is the best it can possibly be.”

EXTRA VALUE COMPETITION in the games media is fierce and the magazines are no exception. As a result, print publications need to put a real effort on presentation to entice potential buyers. “Walk into a shop and there’s shelves full of magazines and they’re all bright and screaming for your attention, so how do you begin to stand out?” asks OPM editor Matthew Pellett. “Last year, we mixed up our strategy slightly in terms of our cover games and how we put the packaging together. Also we introduced a couple of gifts that we haven’t done before, console decals, and lightbar decals – they went down well.” He continues: “At the end of the day you sell magazines because of packaging. Our managing art editor, Milford Cuppock, made some incredible

TOMORROW’S NEWS And, looking forward to 2016, is Official PlayStation Magazine going to see yet another sizeable increase in sales next year? “It’s something I would like to happen, of course,” Pellett says. “We have big ambitions and are building on a great foundation. It would be idiotic of me to say: ‘we’ll definitely do it again’. We need to make sure that each month we are putting out a better magazine than the one before. With the games that are coming out and the team we have in place, I hope we can do that.“

cardboard wallets with loads of great artwork. And that is one of the biggest factors why we did so well last year.” That’s on top of extra content that Pellett and the team put together for two magazines – its E3 issue and another celebrating its 20th Anniversary. “We did a magazine and a thick supplement for each,” Pellett says. “That was a lot of work. We made an magazine during E3 and the weekend, sent it the Monday after. It had all the E3 stuff and an award issue bundled in, too. “Then we had our 20th Anniversary and did our biggest issue ever. It was 200 pages. It had a history of PlayStation and the secrets from the developers. That was a yearand-a-half in the making. The readers really enjoyed it. They were two of our most successful issues.”

TURN TO PAGE 16 FOR THE REST OF OUR MEDIA SPECIALNNNN

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February 26th 2016

NEWS

1m sales and counting for LEGO Dimensions accessories 2015’s toys-to-life champ passes another sales milestone O Nearly 300,000 Starter Packs have been snapped up by Ben Parﬁtt THE success that is LEGO Dimensions continues with conﬁrmation that the series has achieved another UK sales goal. Warner Bros has told MCV that sales of the game’s accessories – which include Level, Team and Fun Packs – have now passed 1m units, reaching 1,062,630. That’s in addition to the 299,312 Starter Packs the game has sold since its launch last year. “The incredible success we’ve had with LEGO Dimensions dominating the toys-to-life genre continues in the UK,” sales and marketing director Spencer Crossley said. “With much-loved entertainment franchises such as DC Comics, The Lord of the Rings, The LEGO Movie, LEGO Ninjago, Back to the Future, The Wizard of Oz, Scooby-Doo, LEGO Legends of Chima, Doctor Who, Jurassic World, Ghostbusters, The Simpsons, Portal and Midway

The incredible success we’ve had with LEGO Dimensions continues in the UK. Spencer Crossley, Warner Bros

LEGO Dimensions features a number of franchises, including Doctor Who

Arcade, fans just can’t get enough of LEGO Dimensions and with new accessories packs to launch in the next few months, we’ll be continuing to keep them entertained throughout the year.” LEGO Dimensions launched in 2015, facing up against the established Skylanders franchise and Disney Inﬁnity 3.0, complete with the timely and potentially lucrative Star Wars licence. But Warner’s game emerged as the annual champ, almost singlehandedly driving the sector toward annual growth of 38.7 per cent.

Ramsdale joins Testronic as COO FORMER EA Europe VP Keith Ramsdale has been unveiled as the new chief operating officer of QA and localisation firm Testronic. Ramdale was made EA’s UK MD in 2005 before stepping up to his former European role in 2008. He left the publisher in May 2015. At Testronic he will oversee what is expected to be a period of expansion. The company already employs over 600 staff. ““This is a great opportunity for me, particularly given that the company is on such an impressive growth path,” Ramsdale said. “Testronic is incredibly well respected within the games business and boasts some of the very biggest names

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in the industry on its client roster. “I’m very much looking forward to working with [CEO of parent Catalis Group] Dominic Wheatley and the team. There is a dynamism within the business that is both professional and fun, and I look forward to working within such an entrepreneurial environment.” Wheatley added: “The appointment of Keith is a great coup for us. His experience and reputation within the entertainment industry is second to none; we’re delighted that he’s joining us at a time when Testronic’s business is enjoying an upwards trajectory, and at an exciting point for the Catalis Group as a whole.”

Former EA boss Ramsdale predicts growth for Testronic 08

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NEWS

Ubisoft is right to give Assassin’s Creed a break, says UK games retail by Alex Calvin FOR the ﬁrst time since 2009, a mainline Assassin’s Creed title will not be launching this year. And UK games retail says that giving the historical action franchise a break is a good thing for its future. “I hope that breaking the yearly cycle of the title will reignite the franchise for customers so the market sales return to what it used to achieve,” says ShopTo head of commercial Alison Fraser. Shop Direct’s Joseph Danson added: “A new game every year has maybe meant it has become tired. An extra year to develop new ideas would be a great way to get fans excited again.”

THE EDITOR

Games Centre boss Robert Lindsay agrees that the series needs to take a break. “It’s clearly a challenge to release a triple-A product of this nature year-on-year,” he said. “How can a game fulfil its potential when it needs to be out within a set timescale? GTA is the perfect example. It comes out when it’s ready.” And GAME’s marketing and insight director Fred Prego says that although the series will be missed, there is a healthy release slate of other titles. “There’s certainly enough of a line-up for gamers to be getting stuck into,” he said. “And they can get their Assassin’s Creed fix through the film later this year.”

COUNTING THE COST OF BOTCHED CONSOLE LAUNCHES

ou can understand why publishers get frustrated when an online-centric game launches without a hitch, with robust and functioning servers, and barely anyone pens a word about it. Particularly when contrasted against the vocal outrage and often quite aggressive opining that accompanies a big launch blighted by online hiccups. Really, though, perhaps this isn’t as unfair as it feels. If a consumer pays upwards of £40 or £50 for a game (and maybe the same again for a Season Pass) it’s absolutely right that they should expect it to work. From the moment they load it up. Without question. They should expect it not to crash, for save files not to corrupt, for progress to be unimpeded and to be able to play it online. Achieving these goals should not be a cause for celebration – it should be an absolute given. The unforgivable online problems that have blighted the launch of Street Fighter V are sadly just the beginning of the game’s issues. Buyers would possibly have been more forgiving if they had access to a meaty offline mode to get stuck into. That would be a great opportunity to familiarise themselves with the game’s new mechanics and characters ahead of facing off against some real-life foes. All of which made the game’s barebones release state infinitely more frustrating. In short, Street Fighter V launched without any sort of significant single player mode.

(Clockwise from top left): ShopTo’s Fraser, GAME’s Prego, Shop Direct’s Danson and Games Centre’s Lindsay

SPONSORED BY

PRE-ORDER TOP 10

TOM CLANCY’S THE DIVISION (PS4)

Tom Clancy’s The Division (XO)

Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End (PS4)

Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 (XO)

Bravely Second: End Layer (3DS)

Plants vs Zombies: Garden Warfare 2 (PS4)

Quantum Break (XO)

Microsoft

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD + Amiibo + soundtrack (Wii U)

Nintendo

Heavy Rain and Beyond Two Souls Collection (PS4)

Sony

Ratchet & Clank (PS4)

Sony

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UBISOFT

Ubisoft Sony EA Nintendo EA

Launching a working game should be a given, not a cause for celebration. Arcade Mode, for many the fundamental heart of Street Fighter, is entirely absent. It may seem like a tired comparison, but just imagine the equivalent of this in any other medium. Imagine bringing home a Blu-ray and finding that you need to wait for a patch before you can watch any of the extra features, or buying an album only to find that the final few songs are locked until the artist finishes recording them. It isn’t just a blow for Capcom, either. Every title that lets down fans in this way – be it Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Arkham Knight, DriveClub, SimCity, Assassin’s Creed: Unity – has a negative effect on the wider market. Getting stung on a £50 purchase is not something that is easily forgotten. Yes, Capcom will fix this and yes, there’s every chance that Street Fighter V will build on its superb core mechanics to become one of the greatest fighters of all time. But while Street Fighter fans will in time be appeased, what of the ripples caused by this fiasco? It’s impossible to accurately map how many sales are being lost by the collective worries these launches have created, but we can be absolutely certain that it’s far too many.

February 26th 2016

CHEAT SHEET

UP & DOWN

Market Data Some much needed new releases see software revenue and sales on the rise

SALES OF LEGO Marvel’s Avengers dropped 23 per cent and it falls to fourth place

£10m

£8.7m 311,335 units

£5m

Week Ending February 6th

£7.5m 281,054 units

Week Ending February 13th

£8.9m 332,340 units

£30m

Week Ending February 20th

FIFA 16 remains at No.3 as sales of the title rose 63 per cent thanks to half term promotions

CAMPAIGN OF THE WEEK THIS WEEK: THE DIVISION

[INFO] FORMATS: PS4, XO, PC RELEASED: March 8th PUBLISHER: Ubisoft DISTRIBUTOR: Exertis CONTACT: 01279 822 822

February 26th 2016

UBISOFT is going to be heavily promoting its brand new Tom Clancy IP – The Division. The publisher re-announced the game back in December with a live action trailer. That was shortly followed by an Xbox One-exclusive closed alpha test. In addition, in January and February, Ubisoft held closed and open betas to help push the game. This most recent beta was played by 6.4m people. The publisher supported this with activity with a ‘substantial’ specialist and mainstream digital campaign that included targetted video-on-demand promotions and ‘paid support’ on social media. The Division’s launch campaign features a heavy presence on TV with the ﬁrm booking ad slots for a CGI trailer. This TV promotion is running alongside male-focused entertainment, movies, comedy and sports programmes including The Brit Awards, Gotham, the Premier League and Champions League. Ubisoft will also be

The Division’s beta was played by 6.4 million gamers

pushing the new franchise on digital billboards at the likes of Waterloo and Liverpool Street at launch. Ads have also been appearing on radio stations including Kiss, Radio X, Absolute, Talksport and Kerrang. “Pre-orders are looking incredibly strong and the feedback from both our fans and key media

has been really positive from the various hands on experiences over the last couple of months,” brand manager Wayne Greenwell says “We expect this to be a huge entry in the video games market and with a good release window with minimal competition we expect the sell-through to stay strong after launch.”

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HTC VIVE WILL COST $800

$2.5m

Vive VR is going to set consumers back $800. This is considerably higher than the $600 (£500) RRP that Oculus named for its Rift virtual reality headsets in January. The tech is going to be launching in April, and initial shipments are bundled with two games – Job Simulator and Fantastic Contraption.

The prize pool for the Halo World Championships has skyrocketed from $1m to $2.5m, Xbox has announced

@michaelpachter Wow, Vive priced at $800. This sets Oculus up to win at $600, and sets Sony up to dominate if they have the ability to price sub $500.

@tha_rami The HTC Vive being just $200 dollars more than the Oculus, for a far more complete package, is a pretty brutal move.

Michael Pachter, Wedbush Securities Monday, February 22nd

Rami Ismail, Vlambeer Sunday, February 21st

CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS III CLAIMS 11 UK NO.1S

STREET FIGHTER V LAUNCH WOES

Activision’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III has broken the series for the number of UK No.1s. It has spent 11 weeks in ﬁrst place. The previous record holder was 2009’s Modern Warfare 2, which managed nine weeks.

New brawler Street Fighter V was released last week, with many complaining about a lack of single player elements. In addition, the title’s servers suﬀered crashes after launch.

@VG_Dave Didn’t seem that long ago people were talking about the death of Call of Duty.

@LightSamus How are the Street Fighter V servers STILL messed up? What is Capcom doing?

David Scammell, Videogamer Monday, February 22nd

Daniel Horkan, Sega Thursday, February 18th

@Just_Ge0 ‘Call Of Duty is dying.’ they proclaim. Still number 1 in the charts. Almost as good as my Domination game yesterday.

US video games consumer spending was up ﬁve per cent in 2015, a report from the ESA and NPD has revealed

7 Consumers pre-ordering Samsung’s Galaxy S7 phone will received the ﬁrm’s Gear VR free of change

4.4m Research ﬁrm Gartner reports that shipments of Windows Phone fell to just 4.4m units in Q4 2015

3 Bethesda Softworks has changed its development setup and now has three projects in the works rather than one

@TIMJ_Andy The fact I’ve pretty much done nothing but play Street Fighter today should tell you a story about how the servers have improved.

George Morgan, Sold Out Monday, February 22nd

Andy Corrigan, freelance writer Sunday, February 21st

ANKA Headset - PDP Design and manufacture the Oﬃcially licensed Microsoft – fully Wireless Headset for Xbox ONE

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GAMESAID THIS WEEK .................................................... PLAY YOUR PART BECOME A MEMBER AMBASSADOR TRUSTEE WWW.GAMESAID.ORG

www.mcvuk.com

LONDON MARATHON

GAMESAID TENNER

STAND UP FOR GAMESAID

..................

In just three month’s time, Warner Bros PR and GamesAid trustee Cat Channon is running the London Marathon to raise money for the charity. The 26.2 mile endurace race is taking place on April 24th.

On March 3rd the MCV Awards will be taking place at the new venue of Bankside Hilton in London. As is tradition, GamesAid will be asking for donations of £10 from attendees. Last year’s show saw £3,088 raised for GamesAid.

Games industry comedy night Stand Up For GamesAid returns to London’s Comedy Store on May 9th. The event will be hosted by GamesAid patron and comedian Imran Yusuf. Tickets are available on thecomedystore.co.uk and cost £15

February 26th 2016

WEEKLY SALES CHARTS

WEEKLY CHARTS EVEN Street Fighter V was not able to drive Call of Duty: Black Ops III out of the top spot in this week’s charts. It is the eleventh week at No.1 for Activision’s FPS, having already broken the record of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which remained at the top for nine consecutive weeks. Capcom’s ﬁghting game still debuts at No.2 but doesn’t outperform Street Fighter IV, which remains the highpoint for week one sales for the franchise. FIFA 16 remains at No.3, with sales rising 65 per cent. Concerning the other new entries, Nintendo’s Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon enters the charts at No.9 and EA’s Rory McIlroy PGA Tour debuts at No.24.

In the meantime, Fallout 4 DLC has landed on Steam and the Season Pass, which gives access to all of the DLC as it is released, is leading the platform’s charts. Pre-orders for Tom Clancy’s The Division and Bandai Namco’s Dark Souls III enter the charts in second and fourth place respectively. Street Fighter V debuts at No.6 on Steam, in spite of the server problems that troubled the game’s release last week. Cities: Skylines Snowfall, published by Paradox Interactive, is the last new entry on the platform’s listings, at No.8. This expansion brings three new maps to the city-building simulation game.

GLOBAL STEAM CHARTS (UNITS)

01 TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09

LW NEW 01 NEW 08 NEW 02 NEW 03

FALLOUT 4 SEASON PASS DEVELOPER: BETHESDA PUBLISHER: BETHESDA

TITLE Tom Clancy’s The Division (P) XCOM 2 Dark Souls III Deluxe Edition (P) Counter-Strike: Global Oﬀensive Street Fighter V Grand Theft Auto V Cities: Skylines - Snowfall Firewatch

PUBLISHER Ubisoft 2K Games Bandai Namco Valve Capcom Rockstar Paradox Interactive Panic

TOP 40 UK PHYSICAL RETAIL

TW 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

LW 01 NEW 03 02 04 05 08 06 NEW 10 09 07 20 13 11

Title Call of Duty: Black Ops III Street Fighter V FIFA 16 LEGO Marvel’s Avengers Grand Theft Auto V Star Wars Battlefront Fallout 4 Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon Minecraft: Story Mode Assassin’s Creed Syndicate Just Cause 3 WWE 2K16 Minecraft: Xbox Edition Destiny: The Taken King

12 14 17 23 18 16 38 24 NEW 33 RE 27 26 22 RE RE 21 32 15 28 25 34 RE 35 19

LEGO Jurassic World PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita, PC Warner Bros Minecraft: PlayStation Edition PS4, PS3, Vita Sony Need for Speed PS4, XO EA Forza Motorsport 6 XO Microsoft Disney Inﬁnity 3.0 PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Disney Halo 5: Guardians XO Microsoft Killzone: Shadow Fall PS4 Sony Rise of the Tomb Raider XO Square Enix Rory McIlroy PGA Tour PS4, XO EA The Sims 4 PC EA NBA 2K16 PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC 2K Games Just Dance 2016 PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Ubisoft Terraria PS4, XO, PS3, 360, Vita, PC 505 Games Resident Evil Origins Collection PS4, XO, PC Capcom Skylanders Superchargers PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS Activision Guitar Hero Live PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Activision PS4, XO, PC Bethesda The Elder Scrolls Online Battleﬁeld Hardline PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC EA Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 PS4, XO, PC Bandai Namco Dying Light: The Following PS4, XO, PC Warner Bros Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection PS4 Sony Deadpool PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Activision Rare Replay XO Microsoft Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Konami Assassin’s Creed Chronicles PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft

Source: Steam, Period: February 15th to 21st February 26th 2016

Format Publisher PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Activision Blizzard PS4, PC Capcom PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC EA PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, PC Warner Bros PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Rockstar PS4, XO, PC EA PS4, XO, PC Bethesda PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft 3DS Nintendo PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Telltale Games/Avanquest PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO, PC Square Enix PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC 2K Games XO, 360 Microsoft PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Activision Blizzard

Source: UKIE/GfK Entertainment, Period: Week ending February 20th 12

www.mcvuk.com

WEEKLY SALES CHARTS

UK IPAD PAID

01 TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LW 02 04 NEW 03 08 06 12 10 05

UK IPHONE PAID

(UNITS)

MINECRAFT: POCKET EDITION DEVELOPER: MOJANG

Title Football Manager Mobile 2016 Minecraft: Story Mode Haunted Hotel: Eternity Hide N Seek The Sims 3 Geometry Dash Bloons TD 5 Terraria Pull My Tongue

TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Developer Sega Telltale Big Fish Wang Wei EA RobTop Games Ninja Kiwi 505 Games Noodlecake Studios

LW 02 03 08 05 10 04 06 17 12

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th

(UNITS)

FOOTBALL MANAGER MOBILE 2016 DEVELOPER: SEGA

Title Minecraft: Pocket Edition Heads Up! Bloons TD 5 Monopoly Game Pull My Tongue Plague Inc. Geometry Dash Tipping Point The Sims 3

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th

UK IPAD GROSSING (REVENUE)

UK IPHONE GROSSING (REVENUE)

TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LW 02 04 03 08 05 07 06 17 10

CLASH OF CLANS DEVELOPER: SUPERCELL

Title Candy Crush Saga Candy Crush Soda Saga Game of War- Fire Age Candy Crush Jelly Saga The Sims FreePlay Hay Day Boom Beach Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes Gummy Drop!

TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Developer King King Machine Zone King EA Supercell Supercell EA Big Fish

LW 02 03 04 05 09 06 08 07 10

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th

CLASH OF CLANS DEVELOPER: SUPERCELL

Title Candy Crush Saga Game of War – Fire Age Candy Crush Soda Saga Mobile Strike Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes Candy Crush Jelly Saga Boom Beach 8 Ball Pool The Sims Freeplay

UK IPHONE FREE (UNITS)

LW NEW 02 04 09 07 10 RE 16 15

COLOR SWITCH DEVELOPER: SAMUEL RATUMAITAVUKI

Title Petrol Station Car Parking Simulator Candy Crush Jelly Saga Marvel Avengers Academy Merged! Piano Tiles 2 Splash Cars Hungry Shark Evolution Happy Wheels WordUp

TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Developer Play With Games King TinyCo GramGames Cheetah Technology Craneballs Future Games of London Jim Bonacci PlaySimple Games

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th www.mcvuk.com

Developer King Machine Zone King Epic War EA King Supercell Miniclip.com EA

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th

UK IPAD FREE (UNITS)

TW 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Developer Mojang Warner Bros Ninja Kiwi EA Noodlecake Studios Ndemic Creations RobTop Games Barnstorm Games EA

LW 12 NEW 03 08 RE 04 07 06 09

COLOR SWITCH DEVELOPER: SAMUEL RATUMAITAVUKI

Title Splash Cars Petrol Station Car Parking Simulator Swing Episode - Choose Your Story Flick Rugby 16 Candy Crush Jelly Saga Piano Tiles 2 GyroSphere Trials Circlify

Developer Craneballs Play With Games Ketchapp Episode Interactive Full Fat King Cheetah Technology Pronetis WebAlive

Source: UKIE/Reﬂ ection, Period: February 8th to February 14th 13

February 26th 2016

MONTHLY SALES CHARTS

JANUARY CHARTS A LACK of huge new releases means that the January charts make for largely familiar reading. Call of Duty: Black Ops III still holds the top spot. The shooter helped publisher Activision Blizzard maintain its position in second place on the publisher ranks. Developer Treyarch was the most profitable studio for the month, off the back of Black Ops III’s success. The Santa Monica-based developer charted ahead of the UK’s own Traveller’s Tales. That outfit came second in the developer revenue chart due to the success of LEGO Marvel’s Avengers. That title released on January 29th, meaning that sales for only two days are represented in this chart. Even so, the game still debuted in fourth place on the Top 40. And given that it is a family game, expect to see it stick around in the charts for a long while yet. LEGO Marvel’s Avengers and LEGO Jurassic World – which rose five places last

month – also helped Warner Bros rise to No.3 in the publisher rankings. But it’s EA that holds the largest physical software market share. This is thanks to the continued success of both FIFA 16 and Star Wars Battlefront, which sit in second and third place in the Top 40 respectively. FIFA 16 remains the console game with the highest digital revenue, according to SuperData. This is due to its Ultimate Team mode. Call of Duty: Black Ops III holds second place ahead of the release of its ﬁrst DLC pack – Awakening – which launched on February 2nd. Studio Wildcard’s Ark: Survival Evolved enters the console digital sales chart No.10, after it generated 620,000 during January. But a lack of new boxed releases means that the market isn’t performing well. Software revenue for the month plummetted by 37 per cent year-onyear to £36.3m. Game sales also dropped 35 per cent to 1.3m units.

LEGO Marvel’s Avengers was the only new title in the Top Ten in January

TOP 40 UK PHYSICAL RETAIL 03

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15

LM 01 02 03 NEW 07 09 04 06 11 05 16 18 19 23 08

Title Call of Duty: Black Ops III FIFA 16 Star Wars Battlefront LEGO Marvel’s Avengers Grand Theft Auto V Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege Fallout 4 Just Cause 3 WWE 2K16 Minecraft: Story Mode LEGO Jurassic World Minecraft: Xbox Edition Disney Inﬁnity 3.0 Minecraft: PlayStation Edition Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

Format Publisher PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Activision Blizzard PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC EA PS4, XO, PC EA PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita Warner Bros PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Rockstar PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO, PC Bethesda PS4, XO, PC Square Enix PS4, XO, PS3, 360 2K Games PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Telltale Games PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita Warner Bros XO, 360 Microsoft PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Disney PS4, PS3, Vita Sony PS4, XO, PC Ubisoft

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

29 13 34 10 20 17 33 12 22 NEW 27 14 RE 24 RE 37 NEW 31 25 RE 35 RE RE 15 26

Destiny: The Taken King Forza Motorsport 6 Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection Need for Speed Just Dance 2016 The Elder Scrolls Online Halo 5: Guardians Guitar Hero Live Resident Evil Origins Collection Batman: Arkham Knight Rise of the Tomb Raider The Evil Within Football Manager 2016 Dishonored: Deﬁnitive Edition Battleﬁeld 4 Life is Strange LEGO Marvel Super Heroes The Last of Us Remastered Wolfenstein: The Old Blood Terraria The Sims 4 The Crew LEGO Dimensions Until Dawn

PS4, XO, PS3, 360 Activision Blizzard XO Microsoft PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Konami PS4 Sony PS4, XO EA PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, Wii Ubisoft PS4, XO, PC Bethesda XO Microsoft PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Activision Blizzard PS4, XO, PC Capcom PS4, XO Warner Bros XO, 360, PC Square Enix PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC Bethesda PC Sega PS4, XO Bethesda PS4, XO, PS3, 360, PC EA PS4, XO, PC Square Enix PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360, 3DS, Vita, PC Warner Bros PS4 Sony PS4, XO, PC Bethesda PS4, XO, PS3, 360, 3DS, PC 505 Games/Merge PC EA PS4, XO, 360, PC Ubisoft PS4, XO, Wii U, PS3, 360 Warner Bros PS4 Sony

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th February 26th 2016

www.mcvuk.com

MONTHLY SALES CHARTS

PHYSICAL SOFTWARE SHARE BY STUDIO (REVENUE)

TOP 10 UK CONSOLE DIGITAL SALES BY REVENUE (JANUARY)

01 TM 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LM 06 03 01 08 07 05 04 09 14

TREYARCH PARENT COMPANY: ACTIVISION BLIZZARD

Developer Traveller’s Tales EA Canada DICE Rockstar North Ubisoft Montreal Avalanche Studios Bethesda Nintendo Yuke’s/Visual Concepts

Parent company Warner Bros EA EA Take-Two Ubisoft Independent Zenimax Media Nintendo Take-Two

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Title FIFA 16 Call of Duty: Black Ops III Grand Theft Auto V Destiny Star Wars Battlefront Fallout 4 Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare FIFA 15 Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege Ark: Survival Evolved

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th

PHYSICAL SOFTWARE SHARE BY PUBLISHER (REVENUE)

01 TM 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LM 02 08 03 06 07 05 04 09 10

LM 02 08 03 07 05 04 06 10 09

Revenue £6.1m £2.8m £2.3m £1.6m £1.6m £1.5m £1.1m £1m £0.68m £0.62m

PHYSICAL SOFTWARE SALES BY FORMAT (REVENUE)

ELECTRONIC ARTS Publisher Activision Blizzard Warner Bros Ubisoft Take-Two Nintendo Square Enix Bethesda Sony Microsoft

PHYSICAL SOFTWARE SHARE BY COMPANY (UNITS)

TM 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Publisher Electronic Arts Activision Rockstar Activision Electronic Arts Bethesda Activision Electronic Arts Ubisoft Studio Wildcard

Source: SuperData, Period: January 1st to January 31st

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LM 01 02 03 06 04 05 07 08 09 10

Title PlayStation 4 Xbox One Xbox 360 3DS PlayStation 3 Wii U PC Wii PlayStation Vita DS

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th

Format PS4, PS3, XO, 360 PS4, PS3, XO, 360 PS4. XO, PS3, 360 PS4, XO, PS3, 360 PS4, XO PS4, XO PS4, XO, PS3, 360 PS4, PS3, XO, 360 PS4, XO XO

Manufacturer Sony Microsoft Microsoft Nintendo Sony Nintendo N/A Nintendo Sony Nintendo

Market Share 42.2% 34.4% 7.3% 4.7% 4.0% 3.4% 2.8% 0.5% 0.4% 0.1%

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th

PHYSICAL SOFTWARE SALES BY FORMAT (UNITS)

ELECTRONIC ARTS Publisher Activision Blizzard Warner Bros Ubisoft Take-Two Nintendo Bethesda Sony Square Enix Microsoft

TM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

LM 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

Title PlayStation 4 Xbox One Xbox 360 PlayStation 3 3DS PC Wii U Wii PlayStation Vita DS

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th www.mcvuk.com

Manufacturer Sony Microsoft Microsoft Sony Nintendo N/A Nintendo Nintendo Sony Nintendo

Market Share 38.7% 29.9% 10.3% 6.1% 5.7% 4.0% 3.2% 0.9% 0.6% 0.3%

Source: UKIE/Gfk Chart-Track, Period: January 3rd to January 30th 15

February 26th 2016

MEDIA SPECIAL STREAMING

How can YouTube Gaming close the gap on Twitch? Last August, Google threw itself into the live-streaming market with YouTube Gaming. But has this new entrant made a splash in this sector? Alex Calvin speaks to the streamers

ince it was spun out of streaming firm Justin.tv in 2011, Twitch has risen to be one of the most prominent players in the modern games media. And with an average 8.5m people coming to Twitch every single day, it’s entirely understandable that other firms would want in on the action. In the last few years, a number of rival streaming companies including DingIt, Hitbox and mobile-focused MobCrush have arrived on the scene. And last August, Google rolled out its live-streaming-focused service YouTube Gaming. So is market leader Twitch is concerned about this competition? “While we are aware of what other platforms are doing and love that they help validate game video as an important part of the entertainment industry, the direction of our brand is influenced solely by what our community wants,” VP of sales for Europe Steve Ford says. “So the short answer is no.” But, despite having the clout of Google behind it, YouTube Gaming hasn’t taken off in the way that many would have predicted. “It’s almost unfair on YouTube Gaming because the team is only something like eight people. It’s effectively a start-up under the

Google umbrella,” Yogscast boss Mark Turpin says. “People think of it as the same entity as YouTube. Really, they’ve not spent any money marketing it, no-one is getting pushed over there. They have a very soft interaction with the gaming scene, but it could still be a major player. There are lots of companies launching in this space but the audience just isn’t there.” TwoMoreWhiteGuys’ Chris Slight adds: “YouTube Gaming doesn’t have anything that makes me use it more than Twitch. That has all sorts of problems in and of itself, a lot of which have been down to the content and some of the viewer base. If someone asked me if I should go on YouTube Gaming, I have no reason to say I should.”

A lot of people watching us on Twitch didn’t migrate to YouTube Gaming. And those who did were complaining about missing features. Chris Slight, TwoMoreWhiteGuys

RECIPE FOR SUCCESS On paper, with the runaway success of YouTube and the power of Google behind it, YouTube Gaming should have been a success right out of the gate. So what is holding it back? “From the creator’s end, it sounded like it had a lot more features. You’d be able to do more with analytics and the like,” Slight says. “We tried it for a bit but it wasn’t really anything different. And a lot

of people watching us on Twitch didn’t migrate over to YouTube Gaming, either. And those that did were complaining about features that were missing, so it wasn’t as good for them. And I don’t find YouTube Gaming as instantly accessible as Twitch.” Debbie Timmins – who streams on Twitch as Weefz – adds: “The interface is just awful. I can’t find what I want. If I want to watch a stream. Every time I look at YouTube Gaming, I don’t know where to find anything. I’m not sure what’s a video and what’s a livestream. It’s just difficult to use.” STUCK TO YOU But it isn’t just the interface that’s an issue. Viewers aren’t necessarily loyal to any one platform, but rather to the personalities that stream on them. And some of these streamers are so embedded at Twitch that it’s unlikely they’ll move to YouTube. “Big streamers like Lirik are Twitch guys have built their communities there,” Resero Network’s Dan Webb says. “They aren’t going to YouTube anytime soon.” He continues: “Twitch is great because it supports its community, it supports its streamers, it does loads of really cool things with them. If you are a big Twitch

(From left to right): TwoMoreWhiteGuys’ Slight, Resero Network’s Webb, Twitch Partner Purdy, Yogscast’s Turpin, Twitch’s Ford and Twitch streamer Timmins

February 26th 2016

www.mcvuk.com

STREAMING MEDIA SPECIAL

UK streamers say YouTube Gaming needs to improve its oﬀ ering

streamer, you might ask why you should move. YouTube needs to nail the community thing and that’s the big important aspect that Twitch has going for it.” So what can YouTube do to gain ground on streaming giant Twitch? “They need to push it out,” says Twitch partner Valka aka Overclockers UK’s marketing and partnership manager Mark Purdy. “It’s so corporate. Everything down to the pages and the emotes doesn’t seem to be in the hands of the content producer. It seems to be in the hands YouTube. It doesn’t feel like the streamer is in control of what they are doing, they just provide the content. “On Twitch, you can do all your own emotes and panels. You can customise them to your needs and your expectations. You can’t really do that much on YouTube Gaming.” AGE OF DISCOVERY Timmins feels there is certainly one area that might help YouTube Gaming overtake the competition. “The major issue with Twitch is discovery,” she says. “That is the one place where YouTube Gaming could swoop in and make everything easier. A lot of people don’t want to see the bigger streamers because when you reach a certain point, then the chat no longer feels like a

www.mcvuk.com

community, it feels like a bunch of people shouting. If I want to look for a channel, I want something relatively small. Looking for a game I don’t hate with a reasonable viewer count is almost impossible in terms of a decent community. “If YouTube Gaming did something where tags could be applied to channels by streamers or users would be brilliant. These could say whether they’re a variety streamer [someone who streams a number of different games] or they’re only someone who does one particular game. That would go a long way to finding people who are live and are playing what I want to see.” Resero’s Webb adds: “YouTube Gaming just needs to do what Twitch does but better. If you want to do something you either need to be first or have to do it ten times better. It has to get rid of Content ID [system on YouTube that allows companies to ensure their copyright isn’t being infringed]. And it would cause a few tremors in the streaming industry if it got rid of the delay. Those kinds of things. I just can’t find foresee that happening, which is a shame. “And they need some poster boys for the brand, people to champion it who are using it regularly and are a big and have a sizeable following. Whether that’ll take away from Twitch, I’m not that certain.”

HITTING THE SPOT

Hitbox boss Klimscha believes the ﬁrm’s tech-focus sets it apart

YOUTUBE GAMING is far from the only new player in the billion dollar streaming market. DingIt launched in February 2015, while Hitbox – which opened in 2013 – aims to become a larger presence in the market following $4m of investment last November. And the Austrian firm believes it can be make a dent in the market with its proprietary tech. “A lot of people believe there is no room for a second or third player in the streaming market,” CEO

Martin Klimscha says. “I totally disagree with that. We’re the first company pushing for 1080p 60fps streaming. Last year we started with 4K streaming at 60 fps and we’re pretty focused on the technology. That sets -us apart from Twitch and YouTube Gaming.” He continues: “We built our own tech, we do not use anything from any third-party. We have great tech and are fully-focused on what gamers need and want and that’s very much positive in our community.”

February 26th 2016

MEDIA SPECIAL ONLINE ADVERTISING

ANALYSIS

Ad-Blocking: Game Over? without realising the impact of their actions, not just on publishers and advertisers but the entire games industry. This issue is compounded by the fact millennial men ad-block most. That means the highest ratio of blockers are the same ‘core’ gamers that visit many of the games publishers we represent. And while all publishers are suffering losses, it’s the core independents that hurt the most. Not only is advertising their primary source of revenue, they suffer from the highest rates of ad-blocking because their audience are young men.

26.5 per cent of gamers are blocking ads, threatening the main source of revenue for indie publishers. Venatus Media’s co-founder Rob Gay discusses the consequences of ad-blocking

n just a few decades, gaming has gone from a cottage hobby to the fourth biggest entertainment industry on the planet – outselling movies and music (gambling, reading and television are the three biggest). Gaming bean counter NewZoo forecast the market at $91.5 billion last year alone. Factor in the ubiquity of mobile with the largest growth rate of players and it looks like we’re in rude health. But pull back the curtains and the industry is facing a huge financial challenge from ad-blocking. While advertisers don’t pay for ads blocked, they still suffer lack of reach from campaigns not viewed. But it’s publishers who’re haemorrhaging revenue because gamers who ad-block are killing the thing they love. Everyone saw PageFair and Adobe’s Cost Of Ad-Blocking report last year with global accumulated losses at $21.8 billion. And gaming sits at number one with 26.5 per cent of gamers blocking ads. While PageFair’s methodology has been questioned, it’s a warning flag - players want free content

Players want free content without realising the impact of their actions on the entire games industry.

AN INCREASING CONCERN The ad trade body IAB has tried to block the ad-blockers by teaming up with tech developers to circumvent the technology. That’ll just lead to an escalating arms race of developers deploying measures and counter-measures on both sides, so no one wins. That leaves many gaming sites testing new ways to keep their audience and continue to make money. Bigger publishers have the finances and clout to offer paywalled content, “opt-in” advertising or subscription services, payment models they can afford to experiment with because they have multi-channel revenue streams. There’s also the option of only serving ads that meet the reductive “Whitelist” criteria to appease

Rob Gay, Venatus Media

26.5%

ad-blockers, which is tantamount to extortion and counterintuitive to next-generation tech - taking online advertising back to the 1990s while the rest of the internet moves forward. For core independents operating on tighter budgets, advertising is their main source of revenue and it’s being taken away by the very same customers who use their services. That’s killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Some sites also politely asked their customers not to blockads but, with so many gaming sites to choose from, their audiences are going elsewhere if they don’t like the ads. For us, core gaming is a fantastic calling card for potential advertisers. And because of the exponential growth of gaming, many nongaming brands want to tap the market. That’s why we have an eclectic array of advertisers on our books, from consumer goods companies to car manufacturers. But the unsustainable rate of ad-blocking needs to be tackled head on by a games industry working collectively. There’s always a period of anomaly when new technology beds in. We see a future where open communication in the games industry will help define a better working eco-system between publishers, advertisers and gamers. But if it gets worse, would the last person to leave the internet please turn the light off?

Global Share of ad blocking rates by site category (Q2 2015)

Gaming

19.1% Social Networking

17.0%

16.9%

Tech/Internet

Education

February 26th 2016

15.5% Sports/ Recreation

13.3% Financial Services

11.2% Automotive

10.5%

10.0%

Seatch Engines/ Restaurants Portals Dining/Food

00 18

6.9%

6.9&

Political/ Social Advocacy

Travel

5.4%

5.2%

5.0%

Health

Personals/ Dating

Real Estate

4.9% Charitable Organizations

2.5% Government/ Legal

www.mcvuk.com

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Pre-release product shown, subject to change. Apps sold separately. Windows 10 upgrade offer valid for TXDOLÃ&#x20AC; HG :LQGRZV DQG :LQGRZV GHYLFHV LQFOXGLQJ devices you already own) for one year after Windows 10 upgrade availability. Visit windows.com/windows10upgrade for more details.

XXX XXXSPECIAL IGN INTERVIEW MEDIA

“We stay relevant by not limiting ourselves to one medium” As digital continues to undergo significant evolution, IGN’s UK editor-in-chief Alex Simmons tells MCV about the importance of being present on various platforms to remain pertinent and broaden its audience

What are your thoughts on the state of the media industry? Just as the evolution from print to online has been necessary for publishers and for some continues to be problematic, the digital proposition is itself evolving, and we’ll see more gaming websites struggle. This will be down to three drivers: firstly, diminishing overall ad inventory via ad blocking and ad viewability thresholds. Secondly, there’s the continuing growth of programmatic buying (automatic buying of an ad space, powered by algorithms) and more recently, data-only buying. With client concerns around placements on occasionally-dubious sites being increasingly voiced in 2015, we will see an increase of automated buying on premium content gaming sites through 2016. Thirdly, distributing content to where gamers are in order to offer a better service to our partners. Gamers have their favoured platforms: media owners need to be on those platforms. What challenges are you facing? The rise of programmatic inventory and data buying means our sales teams are on a constant learning curve to ensure our agency and client partners best understand our capabilities. As we distribute IGN to multiple channels, a challenge is to ensure the experience on each of them is appropriate and interesting to the platform - we need to curate our content differently in each case. People consume media on a growing number of platforms. How are you evolving your coverage? Our goal is and always has been to be the expert voice of games wherever people are talking about them. We have worked hard to increase the ways people can

February 26th 2016

view IGN content – on PlayStation, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Snapchat Discover, Xbox, and more. But the way we approach content differs by platform, so what you see on IGN might be different from what’s on YouTube, or what you’ll find on Facebook.

thinking behind this? We loved what Secret Cinema was doing in the film space and wanted to transport our audience into the game worlds they know and love, so the idea is to work with publishers to bring that interactive experience to life. But we also wanted IGN Premiere to reach beyond those in the room, which is why we put such as big focus on the livestream component, giving IGN’s broader audience a taste of the live event – while at the same time debuting brand new gameplay – from the comfort of their home. The feedback we’ve had from both those who attended and the publishers we worked with has been incredible and we are committed to putting out more IGN Premiere events this year.

Increasingly, publishers are using services like Twitch to promote their games. Is that a concern? How are you staying relevant? It’s not a concern. In fact, Twitch is an opportunity, because just like we’re on Apple TV, YouTube and Snapchat Discover, IGN has a big presence on Twitch. Also, we have a creative solutions department, which works with publishers to get our audience engaging with their

The digital proposition is evolving and we’ll see more gaming websites struggle.

IGN is a global business. How does this change the way you work? Having teams in countries across the world enables us to have fantastic relationships with publishers and developers on a local level, no matter where they are, which has opened up opportunities we simply wouldn’t have had if we only existed in the UK, US and Australia. But more importantly, it means IGN’s

Alex Simmons, IGN

products, not just on site but across multiple platforms, which gives us a tremendous amount of flexibility in our approach. For example, we can stream to Twitch in one portion of a campaign while hosting an offline event in another. Elsewhere, we often collaborate with other media owners – such as radio and cinema – to play on the strengths each party can bring to the table, so whatever makes most sense for the product, we can be a part of. We stay relevant by not limiting ourselves to one medium or one type of activity. Last year you launched your IGN Premiere events. What was the

00 20

coverage resonates with a far larger audience, because it speaks to them and encourages conversation in their own language. Has the way in which your global offices worked together changed at all? IGN now has 27 editions in 21 languages across 110 countries, so the flow of communication between all offices has been key. It’s only been possible by having people dedicated to sharing content and information, so an article or video, no matter where it’s created, can appear on the homepage of any edition within minutes.

B Y

Your decisions create the stories in two incredible adventures − remastered for PlayStation®4.

YOUR EVERY MOVE MATTERS

Heavy Rain™ • Discover how far you’ll go to save someone you love. • Explore multiple plot routes shaped by your choices. • Play as 4 characters with different stories and skills.

BEYOND: Two Souls™ • Embark on an emotional journey starring Ellen Page and Willem Dafoe. • Prepare for a psychological challenge packed with unexpected twists. • Wield strange powers to affect the world around you.

“2” and “PlayStation” are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Also, “Ø” is a trademark of the same company. Ratchet & Clank ©2016 Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC. Published by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Ltd. Developed by Insomniac Games. “Ratchet & Clank ” is a trademark or a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe. All rights reserved.

SENSIBLE OBJECT INDIE INTERVIEW

INDIE INTERVIEW Fabulous Beasts and where to find them The toys-to-life market is ruled by iconic blockbuster brands like Skylanders, Disney Infinity, Amiibo and LEGO Dimensions. So why is indie studio Sensible Object entering the fray with Fabulous Beasts? Alex Calvin reports

ince Skylanders hit the market in 2011, the toys-to-life market has exploded. Disney joined the sector in 2013 with Infinity, while Nintendo launched Amiibo the following year. Then in 2015, Warner Bros released LEGO Dimensions. Between them, these four giants have access to some of the most iconic brands out there – Mario, Batman, Star Wars, Marvel... the list goes on – and was worth £129m in 2015. But now five-man indie studio Sensible Object is trying to launch into the sector with its mobile toys-to-life title, Fabulous Beasts. “What we saw from indie games in the software space was that there was plenty of room for games that appeal to a slightly different audience,” founder Alex Fleetwood tells MCV. “It’s different from the mainstream, big, corporate product. Fabulous Beasts is coming from a slightly different place and has a slightly different spirit. It also really helps that we’re a small team out there advocating passionately on behalf of our gaming product. We don’t have any big movie tie-ins to connect our game to, but we do have the passion and enthusiasm of a team that really cares about the game that it’s making. What we believe is that the indie hardware game space has just as much opportunity to grow and thrive as the software space has.”

“Table top gamers have responded well to the depth of the gameplay, the sophisticated way we have integrated the digital and physical elements of the game, the design-quality of the Artefacts [figures, pictured] in the game. They see it as something really cool that they want to add to their board game collection. “Design-conscious parents are also interested. There’s lots of discussion and debate around screen time for kids, what kinds of play experiences can be suitable for the whole family and really social. And that consumer really sees this as a game that has more of a real-world play experience than most of the comparable toys-tolife games. It’s something really valuable to them.”

Fabulous Beasts is approaching toys-to-life from a slightly different place with a slightly different spirit. Alex Fleetwood, Sensible Object

BIG KIDS The title is certainly an interesting twist on the toys-to-life genre, integrating Jenga-like stacking elements to the mix. And unlike most toys-to-life releases, Fabulous Beasts isn’t intended primarily for kids. “We’re aiming at adults who are spending money on toys-to-life,” Fleetwood explains. “A lot of these products are well beyond pocket money range. There is a fairly significant segment of toys-to-life which is adult collectors – that number goes up if you look at Amiibo.

www.mcvuk.com

STAND OUT FROM THE CROWD Fabulous Beasts is different enough that it seems like something a publisher would grab up. But Sensible Object has turned to crowdfunding platform Kickstarter, and at the time of writing has just passed its funding goal of £150,000. “The publisher space for indie toys-to-life games doesn’t quite exist yet,” Fleetwood says. “It’s too early to be making those kinds of relationships. More importantly, Kickstarter is an incredible platform both for the kinds of people that we can access globally and the fact that we can raise meaningful revenues there that enable us to commit to our first production run. “Crucially, we can find a really active community of backers and potential players. We’re having some really fun and interesting conversations with our backers about possible expansions, different digital game modes, what kinds of beasts they’d like to see in the game. And we’re giving an enormous amount of value as developers from that conversation. We’ve tried to design Fabulous Beasts with the ability to add in content in mind. “We hope to be designing and evolving Fabulous Beasts for a long time to come.”

February 26th 2016

MARKET MOVES

APPOINTMENTS

Henry Clay launches Hype Management Clay was Activision’s senior PR manager O 2K appoints UK PR manager O Ripstone hires community coordinator HYPE MANAGEMENT | After four years at Activision, HENRY CLAY has left the firm to create his own company. “I’m extremely excited to have launched Hype Management, an influencer relations and talent management agency, specially created for the video games industry,” explained the former senior PR manager. “Hype Management’s objective is to bring influencers, such as YouTube content creators and Twitch streamers, together with video game publishers and brands, to support the creation of kickass content that informs and entertains audiences whilst at the same time developing

February 26th 2016

team member, as the UK PR manager. SIMON TURNER, head of marketing and PR at 2K commented: “We’re delighted to welcome Charley to the team, she not only brings her comprehensive experience and understanding of the market but also her genuine passion for the industry.” Grafton-Chuck previously worked as a senior account manager at Stature PR.

successful, long-term careers for represented talent. “Having specialised in influencer relations at Activision, I can appreciate the needs and challenges for both brands and content creators. So I wanted to use my experience to provide a solution that works for everyone. Operational for just over a month, Hype Management is already establishing a sizeable portfolio of talent and has commercial relationships with a number of videogame publishers and brands.”

RIPSTONE | Liverpool-based publisher Ripstone has hired HOLLIE PATTISON as its new social media and community coordinator.

2K GAMES | CHARLEY GRAFTON-CHUCK has become 2K Games’ newest

“She will be handling all our social media channels, helping to amplify the work we do with independent developers and increase community engagement,” said MICHELLE TURNER, Ripstone’s head of PR and marketing. Pattison previously worked as a marketing executive at The Studio, the first school and sixth form in the UK to specialise in careers in the games industry. “I’m really excited to be joining the Ripstone team to deliver engaging social strategies across a range of great indie titles. I’m looking forward to getting stuck in to the upcoming console launch of Ironcast whilst sharing the journey with our players along the way,” she stated.

www.mcvuk.com

MARKETPLACE Sponsored by

SHELF LIFE Martin Culmer from Video Gaming 24/7 in Chester-le-Street talks about the North East Retro Gaming convention and points out the developers’ responsibility in making VR a success How has business been? It has been reasonably steady lately. Call of Duty: Black Ops III is still selling well and we have been doing quite well on LEGO Marvel’s Avengers since its launch. Other than that, everything else has just been quite steady. PlayStation 4 is still the strongest console. What platform do you think will perform the best this year? I would say PlayStation 4, just because I know they’ve got quite

PRE-ORDER CHARTS

or Xbox Live. Digital is quite a big issue. But we sell digital content ourselves, which is quite novel.

a few exclusives coming over this year. I think that will help. What challenges are you facing at the moment? Digital is a big competitor now compared to standard outlets. We’ve got a lot of help from the reps as they come in, from Sony and Microsoft. We have indie titles and store exclusive content when you pre-order, which I think help to keep people coming here rather than using the PlayStation Store

What are your prospects for the year to come? We are selling a lot of retro consoles and games as well, so we are going to keep that side of things alive. I’m looking at maybe doing some conventions, such as the NERG (North East Retro Gaming). It is held once a year in Gateshead and they have arcade

If developers embrace virtual reality and push it as much as they can, it could be really fantastic. Martin Culmer, Video Gaming 24/7

PRICE CHECK: SHEFFIELD

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EA, XO

EA, PS4

N/A

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IN STORE

5. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD + amiibo Nintendo................................................................ Wii U

STAR WARS BATTLEFRONT

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7. Tom Clancy’s The Division Ubisoft ..........................................................................XO

UPLOADING The latest digital releases coming to market

HITMAN GO

PIXEL PIRACY

HEAVY RAIN

Square Enix’s strategy/puzzle title is available on PS4, Vita and Steam

Following its success on Steam, Pixel Piracy has landed on PS4 and XO

The remastered version of Sony’s hit will be released on PS4 next week

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February 26th 2016

ONLINE

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OUT: MARCH 4TH

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and pinball machines, along with old consoles. It’s a big convention where you basically have the opportunity to play on lots of old machines. I’m going this year, to let people know where we are and what we sell. What are your thoughts on virtual reality? As an actual piece of technology, I think it will be brilliant. Sales wise it’s all going to depend on if people are willing to put that amount

Phone: 0191 387 5620 Website: www.videogaming247.co.uk

of cash in what is, in essence, an add-on to their consoles. It would be like asking someone to pay a few hundred pounds for a controller. At some point in the future, it’s going to rest on developers also. If they embrace it and push it as much as they can, it could be really fantastic. But customers have been bitten before by things like the Kinect, maybe even the Vita. It could happen again. But it’s got a lot of potential.

INCOMING TITLE

WANT TO FEATURE YOUR OUTLET IN MCV? Contact mdealessandri@nbmedia.com or call 01992 515 303

Ubisoft’sTom Clancy’s The Division hit retail next month and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD debuts on Wii U in just a few days FORMAT

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TELEPHONE

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February 26th 2016

POKEMON

POKÉMON Nintendo is bringing Pokémon Blue, Red and Yellow to the 3DS eShop tomorrow. Since the original releases, the titles’ universe has become colossal, with more and more merchandise hitting shelves every year. Marie Dealessandri has selected the best items

2016 marks the 20th anniversary of Pokémon. What began as a simple monster-catching title has become the second biggest video games franchise of all time (behind Mario), and a Japanese cultural icon. As of September 2015, 277m units of all Pokémon-related software had been shifted, according to The Pokémon Company, which was created in 1998 to run the brand. Starting with 151 Pokémon species in the original games, the

The Pokémon franchise now boasts 721 species and more than 120 games.

series now feature 721 characters and over 120 titles. Nintendo first launched Pokémon in 1996, with three versions: Red, Blue, and Green. The latter had never been released outside of Japan. These titles remain the bestselling Pokémon games of all time, with 31.38m copies sold. And to celebrate the franchise’s 20th birthday, Pokémon Red and Blue are coming back to life tomorrow, via the Nintendo’s 3DS Virtual Store.

NINTENDO 2DS POKÉMON SPECIAL EDITIONS To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Pokémon and the re-release of the original games, Nintendo is launching three Special Edition 2DS. They all include a pre-installed Virtual Console version of Pokémon Blue, Red or Yellow, as well as 2DS case, a sheet of 15 stickers and a download code for a Home Menu theme. SRP: £79.99 Manufacturer: Nintendo Distributor: Open Contact: 01753 483 700

MEWTWO NO.51 AMIIBO

NANOBLOCK POKÉMON FIGURES

Mewtwo is the latest Pokémon to be released as an Amiibo, principally for Super Smash Bros on Wii U and 3DS.

Nanoblock’s catalogue includes a dozen Pokémon characters, such as Squirtle, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Eevee or Charmander.

SRP: £10.99 Manufacturer: Nintendo Distributor: Open Contact: 01753 483 700

SRP: £9.99 Manufacturer: Kawada Distributor: Marbel Toys Contact: sales@marbel.co.uk

February 26th 2016

POKÉMON: DELUXE ESSENTIAL HANDBOOK This 368-page book features stats and facts on over 700 Pokémon. It was updated last year to include the new X and Y monsters. . SRP: £7.99 Manufacturer: Scholastic Distributor: Scholastic UK Contact: 020 7756 7756

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POKEMON Sponsored by

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The special Pikachu edition, Pokémon Yellow, released in 1998, will also be available. One of the reasons for Pokémon’s huge success is that the franchise has managed to win over a very large audience, from kids to professional players. The monster-catching series has also expanded its universe to trading card games, TV shows and movies, as well as an impressive amount of

accessories. The Pokémon Company reports 170 official licensees, selling around 5,000 Pokémon-related items. The total worldwide Pokémon market represents over ¥4.6 trillion (£493bn) according to The Pokémon Company. This figure includes video games, the trading card game (21.5 billion cards worldwide), licensed items, seventeen movies and TV shows (over 800 episodes aired in 93 countries).

POKÉMON TCG: XY—BREAKPOINT ELITE TRAINER BOX This bundle includes 8 Pokémon Trading Card Game: XY—BREAKpoint booster packs, 65 card sleeves featuring Mega Gyarados, 45 Pokémon TCG Energy cards, a player’s guide to the XY—BREAKpoint expansion, six damage-counter dice, one competitionlegal coin-ﬂip die, a collector’s box featuring Mega Gyarados to hold everything and four dividers to keep it organised. SRP: £34.99 Manufacturer: The Pokémon Company Distributor: Esdevium Contact: 01420 593 593

OFFICIAL POKÉMON CHARACTERS BOY’S HOODIE

MONOPOLY: POKÉMON KANTO EDITION

PIKACHU UNIVERSAL FOLIO

The hoodie shows Groudon and Kyogre, the legendary Pokémon from Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, and an inevitable Pikachu.

In this Monopoly special edition, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Eevee and Jigglypuﬀ are the tokens.

This case suits any Nintendo 2DS or 3DS and features numerous pockets to protect game cards and accessories.

SRP: £18.99 Manufacturer: Fashion UK Distributor: Noisy Sauce Contact: 01827 237 222

SRP: £29.99 Manufacturer: Hasbro Distributor: Winning Moves UK Contact: 0207 262 9696

SRP: £11.84 Manufacturer: PowerA Distributor: ILT Distribution Contact: 0845 519 7053

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February 26th 2016

MARKETING, PR & CREATIVE AGENCIES

LEGAL

AUDIO IN

GERARD FOX LAW

Tel: 0044 7985678437 www.audioin.co.uk ........................................................................................................

charne@sprintmail.com www.gerardfoxlaw.com ........................................................................................................

BIG TOP PR Tel: 07784 778197 www.bigtop-pr.co.uk ........................................................................................................

TRADE BODY UKIE

DEAD GOOD MEDIA Tel: +44 (0)7780 600 728 www.deadgoodmedia.com ........................................................................................................

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STUDIO DIVA

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FUNBOX MEDIA LTD

FLUID Tel: +44 (0)121 212 0121 www.ﬂ uidesign.co.uk ........................................................................................................

KENNEDY MONK Tel: 0207 636 9142 www.kennedymonk.com ........................................................................................................

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info@funboxmedia.co.uk www.funboxmedia.co.uk ........................................................................................................

DEVELOPMENT SERVICES & RECRUITMENT

Tel: +44 (0) 208 664 3456 www.creativedistribution.co.uk/ ........................................................................................................

DC GAMES GROUP Tel: +971-50-9287220 www.Doostan-Co.com ........................................................................................................

INCOMM Tel: 01489 588 200 www.incomm.com ........................................................................................................

Tel: 0207 688 6789 www.oklogistics.de ........................................................................................................

PLAY DISTRIBUTION info@playdistribution.com www.playdistribution.com ........................................................................................................

WHOLESGAME info@wholesgame.com www.wholesgame.com ........................................................................................................

Tel: + 44 (0) 8701 600 504 www.audiomotion.com ........................................................................................................

OPM RECRUITMENT

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PERIPHERALS, ACCESSORIES & MERCHANDISE

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Tel: +44 (0)1295 817617 www.ragtagdev.com ........................................................................................................

hello@gamingmerchandiseuk.com www.gamingmerchandiseuk.com ........................................................................................................

REMOTE CONTROL PRODUCTS

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TO LIST YOUR COMPANY HERE AND ONLINE EVERY WEEK PLEASE CONTACT CNANGLE@NBMEDIA.COM OR CALL 020 7354 6000

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT AGENCIES AND SERVICE COMPANIES

COMPANY PROFILE / FUNBOX MEDIA LTD KEY CONTACTS:

ADDRESS: Funbox Media Ltd, Unit 17, Markham Vale Environment Centre, Markham Lane, Markham Vale, Chesterﬁeld S44 5HY, UK

info info@funboxmedia.co.uk

FUNBOX MEDIA LTD, is a third-party publisher for all boxed, digital and mobile gaming platforms. Originally focusing on casual, family friendly and aﬀordable games, Funbox has strengthened its catalogue by bringing to market established brands such as the hit TV games show The Cube, the evergreen problem solving adventure game MYST, Don Bradman Cricket, XBLAZE CODE: EMBRYO and SPACE HULK, alongside its existing impressive portfolio of titles. 2016 promises to be an even more exciting year for Funbox, as it brings to market these new titles: Space Hulk Ascension (PS4 & PS Vita) Top Trumps Turbo (PS3, PS Vita, 3DS & PC) Gem Smashers (PS4 & PS Vita – Digital only) Plus, other great titles which are yet to be announced. Distributing to all PAL territories and with over 50 years of combined experience, Funbox Media Ltd is an established and reliable partner in the industry.

THE BUSINESS OF VIDEO ISSUE 859 FRIDAY DECEMBER

GAMES

4TH 2015

ISSUE 860 FRIDAY DECEMBER 11TH

2015

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS COMPANY AND MANY MORE ONLINE NOW AT:

THE A TEAM

THE BUSINESS OF VIDEO GAMES

INDIE THICK OF IT

N SHAHID AHMAD ON 10 YEARS PLAYSTATION’S DEV CHAMPIO

BESTWICK TAKES US THROUGH 25 YEARS SONY P16 ATDEBBIE OF TEAM17

P18

UK RETAIL SPEAKS OUT 55%

70%

believe PS4 will rule next year (above top),

Twist think virtual reality is doomedUKIE’s SuperData’s van Dreunen

(above middle) and Reﬂection’s Leksell (above)

ack are bdig Charts ital e y’r the time, And this

ns partnerships for mobile

19%

ches charts section console data Q MCV re-laun and digital demand more title

41%

picked Uncharted 4 as their most anticipated game of 2016