DCEmu Featured News Articles

The GamesMaster Golden Joystick Awards has broken the Guinness World Record for the most votes cast in any gaming awards on record.

Over 2.06 million votes were cast during this year's shortlist voting period, smashing the previous world record set by the Golden Joystick Awards in 2009.

The winners of the 29th annual edition of the world's longest running gaming award ceremony will be revealed tomorrow at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge hotel in London.

As well as the awards, the event promises to offer a number of surprises on the night including exclusives and reveals from across the games industry.

The Golden Joystick Awards hopes to break another world record over the weekend, when GamesMaster's Justin Towell will attempt to beat the world record lap time for the new India circuit on F1 2011 to coincide with the actual Grand Prix.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...million-votes/ ...

A number of Sony's first party studios are working on PlayStation 4 games, according to respected industry site Develop.

"A trusted source connected to the matter" told the site that several of Sony's 16 internal studios have stated work on PS4 game concepts that could enter into full production if given the green light.

The site claims Sony has yet to finalise the console's technical specifications and that the PS3 successor isn't expected to launch before 2014.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...derway-report/ ...

Reports are emerging that the PlayStation 3 has been hacked once again in the form of a successor to the original PSJailbreak, dubbed "JB2".

Similar to the first hack, JB2 apparently takes the form of a USB dongle that plugs directly into the PS3 and compromises the system on power-up. Videos released so far of the device in action appear to show an extended boot -up period before the XMB finally appears, featuring a number of options only available to developer consoles, allowing for the installation of unsigned code.

The hack is curious in that unlike the older Jailbreaks, newer games cannot be run from the hard drive: instead, burned Blu-ray discs are used instead with the PS3 appearing to recognise them as legitimate pressed games. Older titles that pre-date the 3.60 update that locked out current piracy methods allegedly work from the hard drive as normal. This opens up the unpalatable suggestion that not only will the makers of JB2 make money from selling the dongles, but a black market of burned software could also emerge. Alternatively, it may simply mean that a debug console - which can work with BD-R discs - was used to create a fabricated video.

According to sources, the dongle has undergone a small launch in Indonesia ahead of a global roll-out, with a small range of pirate games including titles like PES 2012, Driver: San Francisco, God of War Collection Volume II and FIFA 12 being made available. The notion of limited titles being available may suggest that the games are being reverse-engineered, and that only some games may work with the new hack. Alternatively, the makers may simply be releasing the latest games first in order to maximise revenues with the small window of opportunity available before Sony legal gets on the case.

Previous "custom firmwares" could allow for the modification of game code and assets, allowing for an unfair advantage for cheats accessing the PlayStation Network. Although it appears to run new games, JB2 is apparently based on the same 3.55 firmware as older hacks, so there's a very strong possibility that PSN access will remain off limits for those running pirate software.

It's still unconfirmed beyond all doubt whether JB2 is the real deal or not. However, the evidence piling up over the last 24 hours does suggest that Sony's successful anti-piracy measures - which kicked off with the release of Portal 2 and the 3.60 firmware just over six months ago - may have finally been overcome.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/di...3-hacked-again ...

Nintendo of Europe announced yesterday that the latest 3DS firmware update, which adds video recording functionality, would arrive on November 4. However, NWR's Daan Koopman later tweeted an update claiming that the date was "an internal confusion."

He did (re-)confirm one detail about the update, now coming at a non-specific date in November: it will offer a new StreetPass game. Previously, we'd heard that additional content for StreetPass Mii Plaza was coming, but we assumed it would be limited to expansions of the two existing built-in games, Find Mii andPuzzle Swap. We'll likely see a full reveal of this new game at tomorrow'sJapanese event.

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/20/3d...reetpass-game/ ...

Do you like the short clips available on Nintendo Video, but wish they wouldn't randomly disappear from your system when new ones come along? Starting today, Nintendo is offering a selection of previous Nintendo Video shows from DreamWorks, downloadable from the eShop for $2 each.

It's sort of like buying an episode of your favorite TV show on iTunes, we suppose, if that episode was five minutes long and only viewable on a 3DS. Kind of weird, but at least it's an additional option.

In other news, Double Dragon! The ... Game Boy version!

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/20/ni...double-dragon/ ...

Modern Warfare 3 is the overwhelming favourite to be this year’s Xmas No.1, leading bookmakers say.
Both the ‘official’ odds from betting agent Ladbrokes and those from its rival Paddy Power say the latest Call of Duty will once again be the top game when the last chart before Christmas is proclaimed.
It would be the third Xmas No.1 in a row for CoD, if the predictions come true. EA’s best-selling football title FIFA 12 is expected to come in second according to both bookmakers, who are taking bets from today. Star Wars: The Old Republic, which launches just days before Christmas Eve weekend – tipped to be UK retail’s busiest week of 2011 – will miss out, however, due to Chart-Track’s deadlines.
“Call of Duty looks nailed on to grab the top spot and the others look to be playing for second place only,” said Ladbrokes spokesman Alex Donohue.
“We’ve never known odds so short for a game to be number one at this early stage.”
As usual, however, there are some oddities in the bookmakers’ picks – not the least of which is Paddy Power’s 40/1 odds that Final Fantasy Versus XIII could take No.1. The game only entered full development last month.
THE BOOKIES’ FAVOURITES
Ladbrokes (all odds are correct at time of press)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – 1/12
FIFA 12 – 9/1
Assassin’s Creed: Revelations – 20/1
Gears of War 3 – 25/1
Dark Souls – 40/1
Rage – 40/1
Battlefield 3 – 40/1
Dead Island – 50/1
Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 – 50/1
Mario Kart 7 – 50/1
The Adventures of Tintin – Secret of the Unicorn – 50/1
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception – 66/1
Batman: Arkham City – 66/1
Halo: Anniversary Edition – 66/1
F1 2011 – 100/1
NBA 2K12 – 100/1
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games – 100/1
Need for Speed: The Run – 100/1
Saints Row: The Third – 100/1
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword – 100/1
Paddy Power (all odds are correct at time of press)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – 1/16
FIFA 12 – 6/1
Gears of War 3 – 10/1
Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 – 33/1
Final Fantasy Versus XIII – 40/1
Mario Kart 7 – 40/1

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/the-r...as-no-1/086790
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Sales of December’s Star Wars: The Old Republic won’t be counted towards the Christmas No.1.
Although the game is the last blockbuster release of the year, due on December 20th, it arrives three days too late to be included in the final count, according to GfK Chart-Track.
The UK chart tracker told MCV this week that the Christmas No.1 will be decided for the week ending Saturday, December 17th – not the week ending Saturday, December 24th as some may have expected.
“Normally we always say the last chart published before Christmas is the Christmas chart,” explained Chart-Track director Dorian Bloch. “We will stick with week 50, ending on December 17th. One issue with not going for week 51 is getting all the data from retail, which will be up to and including December 24th.”
XMAS NO.1s: A BRIEF HISTORY
EA dominates the Christmas No.1 list, with 11 titles taking the position – seven of which are FIFA games.
Call of Duty is the overwhelming favourite to be No.1 this Christmas, with three of the last four titles taking that position. But it’s not necessarily a sure thing. In 2008 Call of Duty: World at War was pipped to the top spot by FIFA ‘09.
Since the official All Formats Charts started properly in 1997 there have been only two single format No.1s, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City in 2002 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in 1998. There’s no GTA this year, so could Zelda cause an upset? At 100/1, Skyward Sword might be worth a quid.
1985 – Commando (Elite)
1986 – Gauntlet (US Gold)
1987 – Out Run (Sega)
1988 – Operation Wolf (Ocean)
1989 – Chase HQ (Ocean)
1990 – Teenage Mutant Turtles (Mirrorsoft)
1991 – WWF Wrestlemania (Ocean)
1992 – Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (Sega)
1993 – FIFA International Soccer (EA)
1994 – FIFA Soccer ‘95 (EA)
1995 – FIFA Soccer ‘96 (EA)
1996 – FIFA ‘97 (EA)
1997 – FIFA: Road to World Cup ‘98 (EA)
1998 – Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo)
1999 – Tomb Raider: Last Revelation (Eidos)
2000 – Who Wants To Be A Millionaire (Eidos)
2001 – Harry Potter: Philosopher’s (EA)
2002 – GTA: Vice City (Take-Two)
2003 – Medal of Honor: Rising Sun (EA)
2004 – NFS: Underground 2 (EA)
2005 – NFS: Most Wanted (EA)
2006 – FIFA ‘07 (EA)
2007 – CoD 4: Modern Warfare (Activision)
2008 – FIFA ‘09 (EA)
2009 – CoD: Modern Warfare 2 (Activision)
2010 – CoD: Black Ops (Activision)

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/xmas-...epublic/086791
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A big month for core gaming helped UK games retailers take £125.6m during September.
It is only a slight drop of 1.5 per cent compared to September 2010.This is because it was higher-priced core games – such as FIFA 12, Gears of War 3 and Dead Island – that sold the most units.
A drop in casual game sales means that the actual number of titles sold was down 11.5 per cent year-on-year to 4,302,604 units.
umba Fitness was the only lower-priced game in the Top Ten. It costs £24.99 on Wii. The result was a successful month for the HD consoles. Over 70 per cent of all games sold last month were sold either on Xbox 360 or PS3.
As for publishers, Electronic Arts was the biggest company yet again, with Microsoft jumping up ten places to No.2 thanks to Gears of War 3.
But the highest climber in the publisher rankings was Koch Media. Thanks to Dead Island, the firm shot up 20 places to No.4, putting it ahead of big name rivals such as Nintendo, Codemasters, Ubisoft and Activision.
The UK September Top Ten
1. FIFA 12 (Electronic Arts)
2. Gears of War 3 (Microsoft)
3. Dead Island (Deep Silver)
4. F1 2011 (Codemasters)
5. Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Square Enix)
6. Driver: San Francisco (Ubisoft)
7. Zumba Fitness (505 Games)
8. Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine (THQ)
9. Resistance 3 (Sony)
10. Rugby World Cup (505 Games)

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/core-...ptember/086797
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There’s no denying that the video games industry has faced tough times in Britain but things are certainly nowhere near as bleak some would have you think. MCV highlights some of our nation’s recent triumphs...
HALF OF THE UK POPULATION ARE GAMERS
We’ve known for years that gaming is not confined to the darkened recesses of teenage boys’ bedrooms, but a recent study by the Internet Advertising Bureau shows just how widespread the pastime has become on our shores.Out of an estimated UK resident population of 62m, 32.9m have said they play iPad, Android, PlayStation and Xbox 360 games online. The overall age ranges stretch from as young as eight up to 65 years old – and 49 per cent of them are female. With such a mainstream audience actively discussing there gaming habits, who says there isn’t a market out there?
OUR CONSUMERS ARE HUNGRY FOR NEW HARDWARE
The original PlayStation launched in the UK sixteen years ago, and sold 30,000 units in just ten days. By contrast, 3DS sold 113,000 units in the UK during its launch weekend alone. And thanks to motion controllers such as Kinect, the peripherals market is just as strong.
THE SUCCESS OF EUROGAMER EXPO AND GAMEFEST
The retailer’s showcase drew in crowds of 30,000 attendees, while Eurogamer pulled in 35,000 the very next week. And organisers of the latter told MCV that only 5.3 per cent attended both events – leaving a combined total of 63,145 avid gamers across the two shows.
UK GAMERS WILL SPEND BIG THIS CHRISTMAS
There’s nothing like pre-orders to show how much interest new releases are generating. Battlefield 3 has already garnered 1.5m pre-orders, and Activision told MCV earlier this year that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is tracking well ahead of the record-breaking Black Ops. Meanwhile, THQ says Saints Row: The Third is on course to be the company’s most pre-ordered title to date. Throw in strong early interest for Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, Uncharted 3, Zelda: Skyward Sword, and this Christmas is shaping up to be a belter.
WE ARE THE HOME OF FOOTBALL FANS
If there’s one game you can rely on to deliver at retail, it’s FIFA. And you can guarantee the UK makes up a significant portion of the title’s sales. Not only is the flagship footie title a guaranteed best-seller every year, it’s also a great indication of how the market has grown in general. For example, FIFA 06 sold 250,000 units in its first week. Just six years later, the latest edition has smashed that record, selling almost four times as much less time.
MIND CANDY IS A MASSIVE UK EXPORT
The UK social gaming firm’s influence has spread around the world, thanks to its flagship IP Moshi Monsters. This online kids phenomenon boasts 50m registered users – in fact, over half of Britain’s six to 12-year-olds have created profiles on the site.And the brand’s ventures into other fields have been even more impressive. Plush toys, books, trading cards, stickers and other merchandise can be found in Waterstones, Clinton Cards, WH Smiths and other mainstream retailers that few games firms have gained access to since Nintendo.Additionally, the official Moshi Monsters magazine is the biggest children’s publication in the UK, with a monthly readership of almost 114,000 people. Now the company is pushing forward with Moshi TV and the franchise’s first DS game.
WE HAVE GREAT DEVELOPERS
Not all of the world’s greatest studios have moved to Montreal. The UK still has a strong development base thanks to Lionhead, Rockstar North, Rockstar Leeds, Rare, Jagex, Rocksteady, Traveller’s Tales, Mind Candy, Eurocom, Media Molecule, Criterion... to name but a few. And this local talent is working hard to keep the High Street supplied with good quality product. Within the next few weeks alone, retailers can expect such homegrown hits as Batman: Arkham City, Football Manager, Kinect Sports: Season Two, GoldenEye 007: Reloaded, Moshi Monsters: Moshling Zoo and LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7.
OUR GAMERS ARE DRIVING THE DANCE GENRE
The music genre hasn’t collapsed. Far from it. In fact it’s stronger than ever, with GfK Chart-Track data showing that the music games market had its best year to date in 2010 thanks to Just Dance and Just Dance 2. In 2011, this has only grown with Ubisoft’s ever-expanding dance portfolio and new competitors such as best-selling dance-based workout game Zumba Fitness. Earlier this year, MCV research revealed that 1m dance games are being sold every month. And with more than ten new dance games hitting shelves this quarter, retailers can expect good things from the music market in 2012 and beyond.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/8-rea...-strong/086800
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