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by Published on March 12th, 2013 22:34- Categories:
- DCEmu
US rating board now allows clean trailers for M-rated games to be viewed without entering birthdate
ESRB
Despite a recent flurry of political scrutiny on violent games, the Entertainment Software Rating Board is slightly relaxing some of its rules regarding the promotion of titles rated M for Mature. Giant Bombtoday reported that the ESRB notified publishers of the changes this morning.
The most substantial change on the list deals with age gates for online videos. Previously, publishers had to hide all such clips for games rated M for Mature behind an age gate. That restriction has now been removed, so long as the trailer in question doesn't include objectionable content. However, the ESRB must "pre-clear" such trailers, deeming them appropriate for general audiences before they are released. The change applies both to games that have been rated M as well as those that a publisher expects to be rated M.
Another tweak involves the cross-promotion of games. Similar to the age gate pre-clearance, publishers will be allowed to promote Mature-rated games with lesser rated games, but only with prior approval from the ESRB.
"The fundamental goal is to ensure that the cross-promotion of products is appropriately targeted. In doing so we may consider a variety of factors including the nature of the product, audience composition of the media vehicle being used, the intended audience of the game, whether registered users are of a certain age, whether an age-gate is employed, etc.," a representative told Giant Bomb.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...age-gate-rules
...by Published on March 12th, 2013 22:28- Categories:
- DCEmu
Call of Duty: Black Ops II and FIFA 13 are the two biggest entertainment releases of the year at UK retail.
Both titles comfortably outsold The Dark Knight Rises, the third best selling entertainment product of the year.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II shifted 2.67m units, while FIFA 13 sold 2.6m units.for the year. The Dark Knight Rises sold 1.2m.
However outside of the Top Two, video games has a poorer showing in last year's chart, with Assassin's Creed III the next highest charter at No.13.
ERA boss Kim Bayley said: “2012 was a tough year for entertainment due to a number of factors, but this sharp 25% shrinkage in sales of the biggest titles suggests that the quality of releases was at least partly to blame. Luckily 2013 has got off to a good start with Skyfall already selling more than 2m copies – way ahead of last year’s biggest-selling video, The Dark Knight Rises.”
The full chart is below.
The data is courtesy of ERA, based on Chart-Track and Official Charts Company data.
THE ENTERTAINMENT TOP 40
1. Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Activision Blizzard –––– 2,672,364
2. FIFA 13, Electronic Arts –––– 2,601,877
3. The Dark Knight Rises, Warner Home Video –––– 1,694,434
4. The Twilight Saga – Breaking Dawn – Part 1, Entertainment One –––– 1,515,604
5. Our Version of Events (Emeli Sande), Universal Music –––– 1,446,844
6. Now That's What I Call Music 83 (Various Artists), EMI Music/Universal Music –––– 1,389,006
7. Avengers Assemble, Walt Disney Studios ––– 1,349,937
8. TED, Universal Pictures –––– 1,188,295
9. War Horse, Walt Disney Studios –––– 986,870
10. The Hunger Games, Elevation Sales –––– 946,592
11. Mrs Brown's Boys – Series One, Universal Pictures ––– 913,145
12. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, 20th Century Fox ––– 888,629
13. Assassin's Creed III, Ubisoft ––– 886,198
14. Now That's What I Call Music 82 (Various Artists), EMI Music/Universal Music ––– 866,031
15. Prometheus, 20th Century Fox ––– 853,079
16. Ice Age 4 – Continental Drift, 20th Century Fox ––– 819,009
17. 21 (Adele), XL Beggars ––– 816,317
18. Sherlock Holmes – A Game of Shadows, Warner Home Video ––– 816,126
19. + (Ed Sheeran), Warner Music ––– 811,038
20. Now That's What I Call Music 81 (Various Artists), EMI Music/Universal Music ––– 756,035
21. Halo 4, Microsoft ––– 753,489
22. Born To Die (Lana del Rey), Universal Music ––– 743,210
23. Brave, Walt Disney Studios ––– 743,021
24. Bridesmaids, Universal Pictures ––– 710,185
25. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Elevation Sales ––– 707,875
26. Johnny English Reborn, Universal Pictures –––– 694,651
27. Mrs Brown's Boys – Series Two, Universal Pictures –––– 670,956
28. The Amazing Spider-Man, Sony Pictures –––– 656,620
29. The Woman In Black, Momentum Pictures –––– 654,589
30. Take Me Home One Direction, Sony Music ––– 643,433
31. Right Place Right Time, Olly Murs ––– Sony Music 597,370
32. The Adventures of TinTin – The Secrets Of, Paramount –––– 597,282
33. Babel Mumford & Sons, Universal Music –––– 592,173
34. Mrs Brown's Live Tour – Good Mourning, Universal Pictures ––– 585,925
35. Michael McIntyre Showtime, Universal Pictures –––– 579,011
36. Hitman Absolution, Square Enix –––– 571,248
37. Just Dance 4, Ubisoft –––– 562,453
38. Despicable Me, Universal Pictures –––– 549,111
39. Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Paramount –––– 545,502
40. Far Cry 3, Ubisoft -––– 540,237
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/call-...buster/0112263 ...by Published on March 12th, 2013 22:24- Categories:
- DCEmu
We’re now ten weeks into 2013 and so far it’s been a dreary start to the year.
Plenty of new releases have topped the charts, but they haven’t performed well enough to stop total sales declining by more than 20 per cent year-on-year.
Obviously retailers still have long-tail sellers like Black Ops II and FIFA 13 to keep tills ringing. But the truth is that, after their first few weeks on sale, these blockbusters can only slow decline rather than drive growth.
Why, in a year where we have already seen the release of DmC: Devil May Cry, Dead Space 3, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Crysis 3 and Metal Gear Rising, are consumers not flocking to shops?
“Gamers suffer fatigue from sequels and more-of-the-same experiences,” says Deep Silver’s international commercial director Menno van der Bil. “As an industry we have to be more courageous and proactive in finding new exciting forms of interactive entertainment.”
Michael Denny, VP of Sony Worldwide Studios, agrees: “Consumers crave new experiences and ultimately, new IP is the life-blood of the industry; without which, the market would stagnate with gamers having only a shallow pool of experiences to draw from.”
Fortunately, there’s a wealth of brand new games properties on the way in the next twelve months (see the graphic below).
The hunger for new games brands is nothing new. It wasn’t Call of Duty and FIFA?that got the industry talking at E3 2012; it was Ubisoft’s open world thriller Watch Dogs and Sony’s cinematic paranormal adventure Beyond: Two Souls.
Meanwhile, the few new IPs we have seen over the last year, such as Dishonored, Sleeping Dogs and Ni No Kuni, have found an audience.
The important thing is that the industry continues to explore new ideas. That’s easier said than done, of course – investing in the development of new IP is risky when you cannot guarantee success.
Countless new brands have failed but many publishers have shown determination in the wealth of fresh properties they have created – and Sony is chief among them.
"We’re proud to be in a position where we have an
unprecedented number of exclusive new titles coming
to PlayStation platforms: The Last of Us, Beyond,
Puppeteer, Wonderbook, Until Dawn, Rain and
Tearaway will all offer compelling and innovative
new ways to play.”Michael Denny, VP of Sony Worldwide Studios
“At this stage in the hardware’s lifecycle, publishers tend to rely on established franchises,” says Denny.
“But we’re proud to be in a position where we have an unprecedented number of exclusive new titles coming to PlayStation platforms: The Last of Us, Beyond, Puppeteer, Wonderbook, Until Dawn, Rain and Tearaway will all offer compelling and innovative new ways to play.”
The stage in the console lifecycle in which a new IP is released is certainly a factor.
In 2007, in the early months of the current cycle, we saw the debut of BioShock, Assassin’s Creed, Portal, Uncharted and Mass Effect, which thrived with little competition.
Fast forward to 2012 and the only new IP released is Sleeping Dogs, Dishonored and Dragon’s Dogma, but these faced tougher market conditions, competing with both established franchises and those still-growing 2007 brands.
“It’s difficult when you’re coming to the end of a console cycle,” admits Ubisoft’s IP development director Tommy Francois.
“When a console launches, the line-up gamers have to pick from is smaller. If you want to make a bang later on in the lifecycle, not only do you need to innovate, you need to stand out from the competition, and that becomes harder with the technology constraints that we have.”
This was more than proven at the PS4’s reveal, where six of the eight titles showcased were new properties.
Even Street Fighter creator Yoshinori Ono told MCV he wanted to experiment with the PS4’s capabilities “without the constraints of working within an existing IP”.
Wii U has also introduced new brands like ZombiU and the upcoming Wonderful 101, and no doubt there are surprises in store for the next Xbox. New hardware makes both gamers and developers more receptive to new ideas.
“Once [new] consoles come that we can let creative people take more risk, and they feel they can take more risk because they know consumers can be more open,” says Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot.
“When you come out with new machines and new possibilities, and you give talent the chance to express themselves using them, you will see a huge surge in creativity and engagement from gamers.”
Even incremental advances in technology can open the door for new IP. Kinect and PlayStation Move saw the arrival of Dance Central, Child of Eden, Wonderbook, Sports Champions and so on.
It’s the same with other entertainment industries, says Francois: “Pixar works like that. Every new IP, every universe they create originates from new tech: 3D software, rendering software, and so on. Monsters Inc happened because they found they could do new things with hair and fur.
“I think we’re very much like that with new technology. It comes with more power, new features, new ...by Published on March 12th, 2013 22:13- Categories:
- PC News
Today Blizzard launched its first expansion to StarCraft 2, titled Heart of the Swarm. When initially developing StarCraft 2, Blizzard made the decision to split the game into three parts, each with a campaign as long as the original StarCraft. The initial release in 2010, Wings of Liberty, centered on the story of the Terrans. The newly-released Heart of the Swarm is focused on the Zerg. The final release, Legacy of the Void, will dedicate its campaign to the Protoss (and does not have a projected release timeframe yet). In addition to the new campaign, new units have been introduced for multiplayer and new maps have been added, which ought to shake things up in the competitive landscape. Blizzard has also made long-awaited improvements to the social system, including support for groups and clans
http://games.slashdot.org/story/13/0...swarm-released ...by Published on March 12th, 2013 13:54- Categories:
- Playstation Vita News
The majority of American Sony Stores have cut the price of the 3G PlayStation Vita by a third.
Joystiq reports that the handheld is currently available for $199.97, down from the $299.99 it was being sold for previously.
There seems to be a bit of confusion regarding how long the sale will go on for, with some stores saying it is a permanent change and others saying the deal would only run until the weekend.
Some store reps even claimed that the 3G model is being discontinued.
The move follows the machine’s discounting in Japan – a move that led to an explosion in sales.
Will Sony be discounting the handheld in the UK? It’s starting to feel increasingly likely.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/us-so...n-vita/0112266 ...by Published on March 12th, 2013 00:07- Categories:
- Wii U News
UK online games retailer ShopTo has cut the price of the basic Wii U console by £60 (about 25 per cent) following disappointing sales of Nintendo's latest system.ShopTo is offering the 8 gigabyte White Basic Pack for £190 - while the Black 32GB Premium pack is on sale for £280. This discount offer follows retailer Asda's decision to cut the price of both models by £50.CVG understands that the Wii U trade price has not changed, however. It was previously claimed the trade price for the basic model was £205, meaning that - if the number is accurate - retailers are selling the systems at a loss.A stuttering start to the Wii U launch has placed pressure on Nintendo to offer more appealing software as well as lower stock prices.Wii U games accounted for about 1.6 per cent of total UK software sales in January, and it has been estimated that North American Wii U sales came in between 45,000 and 59,000 units during the same month.Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot recently pledged to continue supporting Wii U, but said: "We think Wii U is a great machine. It just has to sell more."In January, Nintendo lowered its annual Wii U sales forecast from 5.5 million units to four million following weaker than expected demand for the console.However, company president Satoru Iwata moved quickly to rule out the possibility of a Wii U price cut....
http://www.computerandvideogames.com...e-to-pound190/by Published on March 11th, 2013 23:20- Categories:
- Xbox 360 News
Star Wars: First Assault, the unannounced action game leaked via Xbox.com last year, is a "predecessor" to Battlefront III, a report claims.The LucasArts downloadable FPS was originally slated for release this spring, claims aKotakusource, and pits teams of eight Stormtroopers against eight rebels in iconic Star Wars locations such as Bespin and Tatooine.The Unreal Engine-powered title was being treated as "step zero" to a full Battlefront III instalment, it's claimed, with LucasArts said to have vehicle prototypes up and running in the event that First Assault were to sell strongly.However, the title - like Star Wars 1313 - is said to have been affected by the recent Disney buyout of Lucasfilm, Kotaku reports.Since September LucasArts employees are said to have been working on the game "with no knowledge as to whether or not it will actually come out."Originally it had planned to launch a closed beta by the end of September, it's said, with a full release this spring.If fans want to see the game released, the report adds, Star Wars fans should offer their vocal support for the project online."Fans should tell Disney/Lucas loud and clear they don't want shitty titles from random developers; they want games to be taken seriously, and they will only pay for quality," the source said."I believe that if Disney/Lucas lets LucasArts die, it means the death of Star Wars as a storied game franchise is right behind it."...
http://www.computerandvideogames.com...n-screenshots/by Published on March 11th, 2013 23:17- Categories:
- PS3 News
Four playable demos will arrive on the US PlayStation Store tomorrow, March 12, as part of this week's content update.Demos for manic shooter Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel and the PS3 version of previously Wii U-exclusive Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge will go live, alongside trial versions of Darkstalkers: Resurrection and Fuel Overdose.Tomorrow's update will also see the arrival of PS2 classic Kessen II, along with seven 'PSOne Imports' (games which originally went unreleased in US), which include Favorite Dear: Enkan no Monogatari, First Queen IV, Mahjong Uranai Fortuna: Tukino Megamitachi, Motorhead: High Velocity Entertainment, Rung Rung: Oz no Mahou Tsukai, Sentimental Graffiti and Trump Shiyouyo! (Fukkoku Ban).Look out for the full update on the US PS Store tomorrow....
http://www.computerandvideogames.com...emos-tomorrow/by Published on March 11th, 2013 23:14- Categories:
- Android News
Mere days before Samsung unveils its newest phone, a Chinese forum post has offered some purported shots of the Galaxy S IV. Now it's worth mentioning from the outset that Samsung plays a good game of subterfuge. It masked the Galaxy S IIIahead of its reveal last year in a blockier plastic frame and it could be that this phone, with a very Note-esque face and outline, is also a filler ahead of the final reveal. It could also be yet another phone that will slot in elsewhere in Samsung'sever-expanding Galaxy family, or even a Shenzhen knock-off that's jumped the gun -- we spotted that the front-facing camera hole doesn't quite align properly.
However, with that said, there's still plenty here to muse on.The shots appear to be taken in a phone unlocking shop somewhere in China, with this GT-i9502 model apparently bound for carrier China Unicom. Interestingly (at least for a flagship), it appears to be a dual-SIM version, with the mono-SIM version apparently picking up model number GT-i9500 -- a number that would fit in with the series so far. According to the leak, it's running a fresh version of Android (4.2.1) with a 1080p display (no word on dimensions just yet), 2GB of RAM and a 13-megapixel camera on the back. The mention of a "5410" CPU suggests it's Samsung's Exynos Octa chip powering it and while AnTuTu might only recognize that as a quad-core chip, we noted during our hands-on with the new chipset that only four cores were being used at a time. We're still hoping Samsung's final design pushes the envelope a little further than a repositioned camera sensor and a new glossy texture -- we've added a shot of this after the break. Rest assured, Jeremy will be letting us in on the big secret later this week.
http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/11/i...v-leak-images/
...by Published on March 11th, 2013 23:12- Categories:
- Ouya Android Console
We're getting closer and closer to the launch of the much-hyped OUYA console. The Android-powered gaming machine will start shipping to backers on March 28th and to celebrate the company is having a little shindig in San Francisco that will serve as a proper "unveiling." The invite just arrived in our inbox and hopefully this will be our chance to see the final hardware ahead of the June retail launch. The startup doesn't seem to just be pitching this as a massive media event either. The tagline on the invite reads, "there would be no OUYA without you." And apparently simply "saying thank you isn't enough." Aw, shucks, you're welcome OUYA.
http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/11/o...ial-unveiling/ ...
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