Monthly Archives: September 2013

Train2Game News: Games Industry News – 20.09.13

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Andrew WilsonIt’s the end of the week so it is time for the industry news round up.

Electronic Arts’ exhaustive search for a new CEO led it to promote from within after all. The publisher today announced that executive VP of EA Sports Andrew Wilson is now the company’s CEO, replacing the seat left vacant by John Riccitiello’s resignation in March. EA executive chairman (and a former CEO of the company himself) Larry Probst will stay on as executive chairman for an undetermined length of time in order to assist Wilson with the transition to his new role.

Shinji Mikami, the father of survival horror, is back to direct The Evil Within, a game embodying the meaning of pure survival horror. Highly-crafted environments, horrifying anxiety, and an intricate story weave together to create an immersive world that will bring players to the height of tension. The Evil Within is in development for the Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and PC and is slated for release in 2014. A new trailer has been released for the game. If you are over eighteen and aren’t of a nervous disposition you can watch the trailer here, http://youtu.be/Z4WqOQTxisM

Blue Manchu is happy to announce that Card Hunter is finally available for all to play at www.cardhunter.com. Created in collaboration with legendary Magic: The Gathering creator Richard Garfield, Card Hunter is Irrational Games co-founder Jonathan Chey’s first game since BioShock. Its unique mix of card collecting, board gaming and fantasy role-playing is set to reinvigorate the collectible card gaming scene. Card Hunter is a free to play game.

Jasper Smith, CEO of PlayJam, the company behind the highly anticipated micro games console – GameStick, confirmed a Global on-sale release date for the device of Tuesday 29th October 2013. Retailers GameStop, GAME, and Amazon will partner for the launch with additional outlets in Canada, Europe and the Middle East receiving stock prior to the end of year Holiday season. The console, which broke onto the games scene in January of this year following a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign, has moved from paper to production in just 9 months.

Game Lab Social, a vibrant co-working space for creatives, is pleased to announce the opening of a new studio space in Leamington Spa designed to foster creativity, collaboration and knowledge sharing. As the vision of industry veterans Ollie Clarke and Steve Stopps and supported by Warwick District Council, Game Lab Social will open a space to work with local talent in specifically created workshops, on-site training and access to marketing, pitching and monetization expertise. Game Lab Social will also work to talent match, combining developer skills to create new development teams with the business infrastructure in place to support burgeoning talent, including graphic design, accounting and legal services.

Train2Game News: Nintendo legend Hiroshi Yamauchi passes away

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Hiroshi YamauchiIt’s with a heavy heart I report the death of Nintendo visionary Hiroshi Yamauchi at the age of eighty five.

Mr Yamauchi ran the firm for 53 years, and was its second-largest shareholder at the time of his death. In that time, he took what was a small-time collectable trading card company and built it into one of the most recognisable and successful video games brands today.

Mr Yamauchi took over at Nintendo after his grandfather suffered a stroke. He utilised the work of legendary games designer Shigeru Miyamoto, who had made Donkey Kong, as a way of breaking into the US arcade game market. Mr Miyamoto’s later work was pivotal in the success of Nintendo’s home entertainment systems, titles such as Super Mario, Legend of Zelda and Starfox became commercial smashes and household names.

Mr Yamauchi, one of Japan’s richest men, also used to own the Seattle Mariners major league baseball club before selling it in 2004 to Nintendo’s US-based operation.

The company confirmed the news in an emailed statement. A spokesman said the firm was in mourning over the loss of the former Nintendo president Mr Hiroshi Yamauchi, who sadly passed away this morning. He died of pneumonia at a hospital in central Japan and a funeral will take place on Sunday.

Mr Yamauchi is responsible for shaping the games industry in to what it is today and we thank him for all he did.

Train2Game News: Derp Studios in The Radio Magazine

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RadMag MS AdvertTrain2Game Student Studio, Derp Studios, has been featured in The Radio Magazine. The Radio Magazine is the only Radio magazine left in print.

Derp Studios is a studio primarily based in Cheltenham Gloucestershire, and they have been working on a project recently to bring small radio stations on to Windows 8 devices. The first radio app that was developed was for RTI which is Eric Wiltshers very own station.

Eric used his own connections in the radio world and mentioned it to The Radio Magazine who loved the idea so much that they have done a two page spread on the story. The Radio Magazine is then shipped out to every major and minor radio station around the country.

Derp Studios has also been heavily supported by Microsoft themselves as they saw this as an incredible opportunity for their Windows 8 platform and have given the team an incredible amount of help.

You can read the magazine at the following link from page 18: www.theradiomagazine.co.uk

Train2Game would like to wish Derp Studios a massive congratulations and good luck for the future.

You can find out more about Derp at their website: www.derpstudios.com

Train2Game News: Train2Game Friend Fee Stewart requires more staff at Formerdroid

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FormerdroidFormerdroid are hiring!

Train2Game friend Fee Stewart announced: We are currently looking for a Unity programmer (javascript) to work in Huddersfield.

The position would suit a highly motivated person who has extensive knowledge of Unity and wishes to grow with this BAFTA nominated, highly progressive team making original IP.

Knowledge of Windows 8 phone would be advantageous.

Single accommodation can be arranged if necessary for relocation.

Please send your CV to fee@formerdroid[DOT]com

Closing date 27/09/13

Train2Game News: GTA V part of British culture?

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GTA VThe BBC has covered the story of GTA V being released and has said that it could be one of the greatest exports from England.

As the latest instalment of the super-violent series hits the shelves around the world, many are taking a step back and assessing the cultural impact of a title that has changed not only the games industry, but perhaps even the entertainment business as a whole.

A shocking fact about the GTA series you may not realise is that even before today’s release of Grand Theft Auto 5, the GTA series has already sold more games than The Who have sold records. That is a mind blowing fact and shows how big this series really is. Across the world, the franchise has shifted more than 135 million units since its 1997 debut.

In the years since its release, the series would be named by the Guinness Book of Records as the most controversial video game in history – an accolade based mostly on the number of column inches dedicated to the series but had the game simply been about violence, it would not have stood the test of time, argues Brian Baglow, a writer on the first title in the series.

“The games sector had always been very good at blowing stuff up – creating more realistic bullet holes – but they had no real cultural relevance. GTA on the other hand, as it’s been set in a contemporary environment, has acted like a black mirror set up against society.”

In GTA5, for example, that mirror lashes out at many aspects of today’s popular culture, taking on foes including TV talent shows and social networking – a less-than-subtle dig at Facebook comes in the shape of “Lifeinvader”. Lifeinvader’s strapline, if the point needed pushing home further, is: “Where your personal information becomes a marketing profile (that we can sell).”

All the games – bar an early London-based spin-off – are set in the USA but crucial to the series’ success is that the world the characters inhabit is peppered with a distinctly British outlook, argues Mr Baglow.

“What GTA does is it actually take the American culture as we understand it from movies – it’s every gangster movie, it’s every crime caper. It uses that, but keeps it very grounded with a British sensibility.

“This is a very large part of the influence of Rockstar North, based in Edinburgh – there’s a tongue-in-cheek streak running throughout. That’s something that people tend to miss.”

The fifth instalment is forecast to sell in the region of 25 million copies within the first 12 months of its release but whether the series will be held up in the future as a prime example of British creative culture is still open to much debate.

Train2Game News: Eurogamer Developer Sessions

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EurogamerGamer Network announced what is being referred to as the best ever developer sessions line-up for Eurogamer Expo 2013.

This year features presentations by the studios making Watch_Dogs, Killzone: Shadow Fall, The Witcher 3 and many more blockbuster titles.

Each developer session brings visitors face to face with top game makers, who will showcase new details of their projects in development, and for the first time ever, every single session will be streamed live at http://youtube.com/eurogamer.

Microsoft’s Phil Harrison kicks off the schedule on Thursday 26th September at 12pm with an exclusive Xbox One presentation, followed by Turn 10’s Dan Greenawalt showing Forza Motorsport 5 and Guerrilla Games demoing Killzone: Shadow Fall later in the day.

Highlights on Friday include David Cage presenting Beyond: Two Souls, Techland introducing next-gen open-world zombie title Dying Light and an exclusive look at the next-generation version of FIFA 14.

Things only get better at the weekend as CD Projekt RED shows The Witcher 3, Ubisoft Montreal presents the hugely anticipated Watch_Dogs, WB Montreal talks Batman: Arkham Origins, and Eidos Montreal showcases Thief.

This year’s schedule also features more indie games than ever, including a trio of PlayStation 4 titles: Resogun from Housemarque, Wasteland Kings from Vlambeer and Velocity 2X from FuturLab. Peter Molyneux also returns to the Eurogamer Expo stage to talk about Project Godus.

The full session schedule can be found at http://www.eurogamerexpo.com/whats-on/schedule

Each session will last around 35 minutes and in addition to hundreds of seats in the main auditorium, this year organisers have introduced an overflow area where attendees can watch the sessions in comfort, recharge phones and meet friends.

Eurogamer Expo 2013 (#EGX) takes place at Earls Court, London, from Thursday 26th to Sunday 29th September. Tickets have now completely sold out, with over 70,000 gamers expected to attend.

Train2Game News: SpecialEffect’s first Crowd Funding Project

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SpecialEffect SpecialEffect, the charity that enables people with disabilities to play games through adapted technology, have today appealed to all gamers to support their first ever crowdfunding project, codenamed PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES.

SpecialEffect aims to raise £5950/€6955/$9190 in order to purchase one new specialist Eye Control unit. This equipment will help many people with severe disabilities to enjoy and play games, levelling the playing field and creating a better quality of life. If they raise double the amount, SpecialEffect will buy two of these amazing pieces of equipment. Eye Control technology can be particularly helpful for those suffering from locked-in syndrome, motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy and cerebral palsy amongst many others conditions. Together with the technical and medical expertise of the SpecialEffect team, Eye Control technology can not only enable people to access and play games, but assist with rehabilitation, build self-esteem and help create a better quality of life through playing games.

But it’s not all one way. In return for the pledges made by supporters, apart from the amazing reward of knowing that your pledge will help many people with disabilities to enjoy games, SpecialEffect have designed a range of rewards. Whether it’s being included on the ‘Roll of Honour’, being featured in the ‘Video Credits’, or a place on the ‘Virtual Plaque’, there are unique rewards available for all supporters. At the top of the list is being invited to visit for a full day at the SpecialEffect National Accessible Games Centre’ where supporters get to meet the team and see the fantastic work they do.

And here’s what a difference this campaign can make – “The look on Henry’s face when he first used the eye-gaze to control something on screen was indescribable… for the first time he could play with something completely on his own. It was a landmark moment for us as a family.” Rob, Henry’s Dad.

CEO of SpecialEffect, Dr Mick Donegan commented – “We set up, create, lend and support the use of specialist games controllers from our library of equipment. Everyone we work with is different. Some of the people we work with find it difficult or impossible to control parts of their body other than their eyes. In these instances we use computers which are controlled just by moving your eyes.

“The demand for this work is growing all the time, so we are asking the gaming community, who have always been enormously supportive of our work, to help SpecialEffect through crowdfunding. The PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES project will help us meet this growing demand and enable us to purchase this very special piece of eye-controlled equipment in order to reach and help more and more people with disabilities to play games”

The crowdfunding project PLAYING WITH YOUR EYES launches on Gambitious at 10am on 13th September 2013 and will run for 30 days until Saturday 12th October 2013 and you can watch the video and pledge your support here –www.gambitious.com/projects/3576

To meet the team and see with your own eyes the amazing work that SpecialEffect do and to try out Eye Control game playing for yourself, please visit the SpecialEffect team at The EuroGamer Expo between 26th September to 29th September at Earl’s Court, London.

Train2Game News: UK Top 20 Games – 16.09.13

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Saints Row IVNow for this weeks game charts. Saints Row IV still sits a top the game charts with the only other new entry this week being Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 remix. I have a strange feeling that next week a new game will be sitting on top of the game charts however…

All formats

Week ending 14 September 2013

POS.  TITLE  PUBLISHER  LAST
WEEK 
1 – SAINTS ROW IV DEEP SILVER 1
2 KINGDOM HEARTS HD 1.5 REMIX SQUARE ENIX –
3 – DIABLO III BLIZZARD 3
4 – TOM CLANCY’S SPLINTER CELL: BLACKLIST UBISOFT 4
5 – DISNEY INFINITY DISNEY INFINITY 5
6 – MINECRAFT: XBOX 360 EDITION MICROSOFT 6
7 – PAYDAY 2 505 GAMES 7
8 LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 13
9 LEGO THE LORD OF THE RINGS WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 12
10 ROME: TOTAL WAR II SEGA 2
11 NHL 14 EA SPORTS –
12 MAX PAYNE 3 ROCKSTAR 17
13 RAYMAN LEGENDS UBISOFT 9
14 ASSASSIN’S CREED III XBOX 360 CLASSICS –
15 KILLZONE: MERCENARY SONY COMPUTER ENT. 8
16 FIFA 13 EA SPORTS 14
17 NEED FOR SPEED MOST WANTED EA GAMES –
18 FAR CRY 3 UBISOFT –
19 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II ACTIVISION 15
20 GRAND THEFT AUTO IV XBOX 360 CLASSICS –
< previous week
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2013 UKIE Ltd

These charts cannot be reproduced either in print or online without obtaining permission from Ukie. If you wish to reproduce the charts in print or online, please contact david.smith@ukie.org.uk for the appropriate license.

Train2Game News: UK Top 20 Games – 9.09.13

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Saints row IVI was away last week so I wasn’t here to put up the games charts. I will be putting up last weeks charts followed by this weeks. The charts last week were busy with new entries but none were enough to knock Saints Row IV off the top spot. Rome: Total War II entered at number two in the charts and Diablo III entered at number three. Further down the chart Killzone: Mercenary came in at number eight and Farming Simulator 2013 just snuck in to the top ten at number ten.

All formats

Week ending 7 September 2013

POS.  TITLE  PUBLISHER  LAST
WEEK 
1 – SAINTS ROW IV DEEP SILVER 1
2 ROME: TOTAL WAR II SEGA –
3 DIABLO III BLIZZARD –
4 TOM CLANCY’S SPLINTER CELL: BLACKLIST UBISOFT 2
5 DISNEY INFINITY DISNEY INFINITY 4
6 MINECRAFT: XBOX 360 EDITION MICROSOFT 5
7 PAYDAY 2 505 GAMES 9
8 KILLZONE: MERCENARY SONY COMPUTER ENT. –
9 RAYMAN LEGENDS UBISOFT 6
10 FARMING SIMULATOR 2013 FOCUS HOME INTERACTIVE –
11 FINAL FANTASY XIV: A REALM REBORN SQUARE ENIX 3
12 LEGO THE LORD OF THE RINGS WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 15
13 LEGO BATMAN 2: DC SUPER HEROES WARNER BROS. INTERACTIVE 12
14 FIFA 13 EA SPORTS 10
15 CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II ACTIVISION 8
16 ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF NINTENDO 11
17 MAX PAYNE 3 ROCKSTAR 14
18 THE LAST OF US SONY COMPUTER ENT. 13
19 MADDEN NFL 25 EA SPORTS 7
20 TOMB RAIDER SQUARE ENIX 16
< previous week
Leisure software charts compiled by Chart Track, (C)2013 UKIE Ltd

These charts cannot be reproduced either in print or online without obtaining permission from Ukie. If you wish to reproduce the charts in print or online, please contact david.smith@ukie.org.uk for the appropriate license.

Train2Game News: musicMagpie competition

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GTA VWith the release of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto V just over a week away, musicMagpie are holding a competition to win a copy of the game.

musicMagpie, a website where you can sell your unwanted Games, Movies and CD’s, is giving you the chance to win a copy of GTA V and a limited edition PlayStation 3 with their new competition. Second prize is a limited edition copy of the game and third prize is the standard edition of the game.

GTA V is one of the gaming release of the year and with the collector’s edition, you’ll be getting the best of everything GTA has to offer; as-well as the game itself, you’ll benefit from exclusive downloadable content, custom characters for GTA Online, a collectable SteelBook complete with exclusive Artwork, a Blueprint map, a New Era GTA V Snapback cap and a GTA V Security Deposit Bag.

All you need to do is name the three central characters of GTA V. Once you’ve entered, the winners will be selected at random from all the correct answers that are received.

GTA V is set to take gaming to a whole new level. Set in the fictionalised city of San Andreas, the game’s storytelling focuses on the pursuit of ‘the almighty dollar’. Gamers will be able to switch perspectives whenever they like and drop in on any of the characters to see what they are up to. As-well as the central missions, there’s the usual truck load of side missions to get to grips with, or you can just treat the city as your very own playground

To enter the competition and to read the full terms and conditions they can all be found on the music Magpie site at: http://www.musicmagpie.co.uk/blog/article.asp?id=813