Guess How Many Copies Of Final Fantasy XIII Are Out There [Final Fantasy]
March 10th, 2010
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Majesco threatened with Nasdaq delisting, again
March 8th, 2010
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This is not the first time Majesco was threatened with being kicked from the exchange. The company came back from the brink of that potential delisting disaster early last year. If you're curious to see what happens after a company is delisted, here are two case studies: Midway and Atari.
Majesco threatened with Nasdaq delisting, again originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft CEO Hints at New Forms, Options for Xbox 360 [Microsoft]
March 6th, 2010
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Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was supposed to be talking about cloud computing on Thursday, but an offhand remark during a Q&A session hinted that additional "form factors" for the Xbox 360, with price points to suit them, are being considered.
By "form factor" Ballmer evidently means something vastly different from a hard drive or HDMI configuration. Someone posed a question about hardware diversity - not specifically mentioning the 360 - and Ballmer seemed concerned by the fact there's "no diversity" in the 360 line.
We actually have a TV implementation in some senses built into Windows. It works really well for small screen TVs that you might call a PC, but for that big screen device here's a piece of hardware that we build, there's no diversity. You get exactly the Xboxes that we build for you. We may have more form factors in the future that are designed for various price points and options, but we think it's going to [be] important.
Whatever that could be, your guess is as good as mine. McWhertor, back in January, reported that Microsoft is still intent on bringing some set-top box/DVR functionality to the Xbox 360 via Uverse and Mediaroom, although it won't be a device that replaces one outright. Maybe that is at play here. It's also just as likely that Ballmer's comments reflect strategic thinking only, not something yet grounded in solid plans.
Ballmer: More Xbox Form Factors in the Future? [Gearlog via Gizmodo]
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Majesco Faces NASDAQ Delisting — Again [Ruh Roh]
March 5th, 2010
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Majesco's share price has again wandered south of Wall Street's Mendoza line, prompting NASDAQ to tell the maker of Cooking Mama to get it back north of $1 or face delisting from the exchange.
Sound familiar? Majesco got the same notice back in August 2008. The company's share price closed today only marginally below a buck - 99.8 cents to be exact - but it'll take more than a one-day, two-tenths of a cent rally to get them out of penny-stock jail.
Majesco has until Aug. 30 to achieve compliance - which happens when the price closes at $1 per share or more for a minimum of 10 straight trading days. If it doesn't, it'll get a notice that its securities are subject to delisting, so it's not immediate, and even then, Majesco may appeal or apply for an extended grace period.
Majesco Receives Nasdaq Delisting Warning [Industry Gamers]
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Natal Marketing Effort Targeting Women’s Magazines [Project Natal]
February 28th, 2010
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You know those women's magazines like Glamour and Cosmopolitan that promise BIG SEX NEWS every single month? Well, if a report's to be believed, they're going to be delivering BIG NATAL NEWS as the product nears release.
MCV reports that Microsoft's ramping up marketing plans for Natal that go after Nintendo's top-of-mind awareness in nontraditional games niches. Celebrity endorsements will be a factor of a campaign that targets "the parenting press, toy retailers and publications which primarily cater for non-gamers."
That would include Vogue and all those magazines with hot unattainable women you pretend not to notice when you're buying Hot Pockets at the Safeway. MCV said Microsoft invited "an elite selection of media" and other non-games firms to a VIP showcase to talk about Natal. Presumably, these were the types of magazines invited. I can't wait until Glamour starts telling us about that secret thing Milo wishes we would do, but is too afraid to ask.
Microsoft Turns to Celebs for Natal [MCVUK]
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Court tosses disabled gamer’s suit against Sony
February 27th, 2010
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Stern had filed the suit last October, claiming Sony's practices had violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). According to Game Politics, the court stated that in order to prove a violation of Title III of the ADA a plaintiff must show: "(1) [the plaintiff] is disabled within the meaning of the ADA; (2) the defendant is a private entity that owns, leases, or operates a place of public accommodation; and (3) the plaintiff was denied public accommodations by the defendant because of [the plaintiff's] disability."
In the dismissal notice (PDF), the court ruled that because Sony is not a "place of public accommodation" it was "not liable" for violating Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Court tosses disabled gamer's suit against Sony originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 27 Feb 2010 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Report: The Ten Most Expensive Video Game Budgets Apparently Are… [Business]
February 24th, 2010
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As video games get bigger and bigger, video game budgets get bigger and bigger, too. But what's games have the biggest budgets?
The sticky part of video game budgets is that some developers will not confirm the actual budgets, and there is some speculation in these numbers. But here, according to website DigitalBattle.com, here are the hugest of the huge:
10. Killzone 2: US$45 million
Most estimates put the budget at $45 million, but higher estimates put the budget at over €41 million or $56 million.
9. Final Fantasy XII: $48 million
The game's budget was $48 million — without marketing costs. As Digital Battle points out, there are rumors that Final Fantasy XIII had a 50 percent higher budget.
8. L.A. Noire: $50 million
Tom Crago, the president of Game Developers' Association of Australia, cited Noire as "one of the most expensive games in development today". Developed in Australia, Noire has been given a massive budget.
7. APB: $50 million
In development for five years now, the game officially has a budget of 50 million.
6. Halo 3: $55 million
According to Digital Battle, the budget was in the neighborhood of $55 million, excluding the $200 million Microsoft spent on developing the game.
5. Metal Gear Solid 4: $60 million
Digital Battle puts the budget at $60 million, which it says was shared between Konami and Sony. The game was in development for four years.
4. Too Human: $60 million plus
Eons in development, platform and engine switching. Too Human was too expensive.
3. Shenmue: $70 million
This Dreamcast game held the most expensive game budget record for almost ten years.
2. Gran Turismo: $80 million
In development for over 5 years, the official budget was $60 million. In 2008.
1. Grand Theft Auto 4: $100 million
Top 10 most expensive video games budgets ever [Digital Battle]
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Develop: One third of devs aren’t satisfied their wage covers cost of living
February 24th, 2010
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Of course, given the immense variety of jobs, locations and lifestyles that people can have, grasping exactly what that statistic represents isn't easy. For example, a Junior QA, scraping by on an average $23,000 annual salary, is likely having a fairly rough time no matter where they live. However, a studio head, making an average of $106,000, could also be struggling -- with a coke, hooker and ego habit. It's all relative.
Over 400 industry members from around the world participated in the survey. If you're a member of the industry or want to be, check out the average salaries.
Source -- Third of devs unsatisfied by wages [Develop]
Source -- Salary Survey: Are you getting enough? [Develop]
Develop: One third of devs aren't satisfied their wage covers cost of living originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 24 Feb 2010 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nielsen study: Most households spend five percent of entertainment budget on games
February 23rd, 2010
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The information comes from a survey of over 3,000 U.S. consumers and uses the "share of wallet" idea for calculating monthly entertainment allowance. Basically, Nielsen took the percentage of money spent in a month on all possible entertainment options by a household and pulled this five percent figure from that -- however, households that were deemed to be "active buyers" of video games had a figure that was around double: nine percent. So, it's around five percent for those casual fans of gaming and about nine percent of monthly budget for active gaming households.
It's also important to understand exactly what Nielsen considers video game content: new and used games; downloadable content; rentals; and peripheral sales. And, unfortunately, there's really no way to quantify these figures into dollars and cents -- different households have different budgets, which could inflate or deflate the figures.
Nielsen promises a more comprehensive report on the subject this March with the inaugural Nielsen 360° Gaming Report: United States Market.
Via Game Politics]
Nielsen study: Most households spend five percent of entertainment budget on games originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 23 Feb 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Warner Buys Batman: Arkham Asylum Devs [Business]
February 23rd, 2010
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Looking to lock down one of the most promising developers in the business, Warner Bros. has purchased a majority stake in Rocksteady Studios, the developers behind Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Warner lent a hand on the first Batman, and will be publishing the sequel, but that obviously wasn't enough for the film studio, which in recent years has sought to increase its influence in the video game business. This should help nicely.
"The Rocksteady team is very much looking forward to creating more great games based on widely recognised Warner Bros. brands like Batman", Rocksteady's Sefton Hill says of the deal. So, what's next, Superman?
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