DCEmu Homebrew Emulation & Theme Park News
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by Published on October 20th, 2011 23:31- Categories:
- DCEmu
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
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 23:28- Categories:
- DCEmu
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
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 23:23- Categories:
- DCEmu
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
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:56- Categories:
- DCEmu
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
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:50- Categories:
- Xbox 360 News
Flying in the face of the current widespread industry belief, a new report has claimed that the successor to Xbox 360 might not see the light of day until 2013.
Develop claims to have word from “sources across the industry” that the new Xbox won’t be unveiled until E3 2013 with a speculative launch date of late 2013.
This conflicts with the behind-closed-doors murmurs of an E3 2012 reveal.
In a separate report, Develop also claims that “several” of Sony’s internal studios have already begun work on PlayStation 4 game projects. It speculates about a possible 2014 launch.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/next-...e3-2013/086804
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:48- Categories:
- Nintendo 3DS News
Update: Nintendo has responded to our enquiry by saying that it doesn't comment on rumour or speculation.
Original story: Reports are circulating that Nintendo will release a 3DS firmware update in November 4 in Europe which will add 3D video recording to the 3D handheld.
In addition, the update is also rumoured to include a new StreetPass game along with improvements to the Mii Plaza and the Nintendo eShop.
The update was supposedly revealed at an event in Munich, according to Nintendo World Report.
Nintendo of Europe detailed the 3DS update yesterday at an event in Munich, according to Nintendo World Report.
We've contacted Nintendo to verify the story, and will update this article when we hear more.
http://www.next-gen.biz/news/report-...ing-november-4
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:47- Categories:
- PC News
A collective of indie developers has bundled over 300 games together into the IGF Pirate Kart. The compilation came about as a way for the developers to share the $95 entrance fee for the Independent Games Festival, removing the barrier to entry for less polished, more experimental game ideas.
"People are entering the games that they are proud of, but not "big" or "polished" or "real" enough to be worth the entry fee." writes indie developer Mike Meyer on the IGF Pirate Kart website.
"The pirate kart represents a different side of indie games, one that I think is far more interesting -- and one that's maybe not so easily represented in the IGF," says VVVVVV developer and Pirate Kart contributor Terry Cavanagh. "That's why I'd love to see a pirate kart enter the festival. Not as a protest, but with complete sincerity."
You can download the 1.36GB worth of games and try them for yourself by following the source link below.
http://www.next-gen.biz/news/igf-pir...00-indie-games
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:43- Categories:
- Android News
Many people were upset at the revelation, reported here in May, that the Honeycomb version of Android would not be open sourced. But Google promised that the next version, Ice Cream Sandwich, would have full source available. Now that ICS is out, though, the source is nowhere in sight. In the thread, Android's Jean-Baptiste Queru offers the following, as to the question of whether source will ever be made available: 'At the moment I don't have anything to say on that subject
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/11/10/...-gone-for-good ...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:39- Categories:
- DCEmu
Research from games analyst EEDAR shows that 51 per cent of HD console owners in the US downloaded digital content for their systems in the past 12 months - up from 40 per cent in 2010 and 34 per cent in 2009.
That DLC generated more than $875 million in sales in 2011, with EEDAR estimating that figure to rise to £1 billion in 2012.
The firm estimates that 20 million consumers in North America bought DLC in the past 12 months, up from 14 million last year and 9 million in 2009.
Drivers for DLC growth include earlier release timing and quicker downloads due to faster broadband speeds.
According to respondents, reason for not downloading digital content for console games includes concerns over privacy, no returns policy, high price and enough free DLC to satisfy the user.
EEDAR suggests that converting the 49 per cent of consumers who do not download digital content into active purchasers would generate another $600 million in revenue.
EEDAR collected data from 3500 respondents in the US and Canada.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-20m-consumers
...by Published on October 20th, 2011 22:38- Categories:
- Xbox 360 News
Battlefield 3 producer Patick Bach has said that the 'optional' hi-res texture pack which comes on the second disc of the Xbox version of the game must be installed to the hard drive to get full graphical quality.
Because there are models of the 360 which do not have hard drives fitted, the texture pack had to be an optional extra, rather than standard as it is on PS3 and PC.
Speaking in an interview with GamerZines, Bach says that 360 owners who do not have a hard drive will be getting what he refers to as a "'standard-def' version" of the game.
"There's nothing magic about it," Bach told the site. "It's the same thing we do for PC and PS3, so there's nothing extra. "I think the controversy about this is that we actually let you do it on 360 for once. So what it does is it gives you the same abilities, kind of, as the PC and PS3. You can actually stream information from the hard drive.
"That's new for Xbox 360, but it's not a new idea for the gaming industry as a whole. No one has really tried to do it properly, so us doing it will create question marks.
"The thing with the 360 is that you need to be able to give consumers a game where you don't have to install it on a hard drive, because there are 360s without a hard drive. So we need to give you the option of installing it, rather than just demanding it. You could call it a 'standard-def' version for the 360 if you don't have a hard-drive."
Although it's unlikely that Bach means standard definition in a literal sense, he was unequivocal about the installation making a noticeable difference to the visual quality of the game.
"It does make a difference, yes, absolutely. The whole engine is based around streaming textures, streaming terrain and a lot of other content.
"It's not the engine that demands it, but that it has the ability to create a more detailed experience. We can't use more memory of the actual machine itself, we need to flush that memory with new information depending on where you are in the game.
"What we let you do is let you have high-res information that gets streamed in and out of memory at all times, and that gives you a more detailed, varied and vivid experience on all platforms. We don't want to take that away from 360 players.
"We're really trying to push the limits of what we can do on the consoles and the PC. Our goal is to see how we can utilise as many of the systems that you actually have in your machine that some people haven't utilised before. Some (developers) just do it like, if it doesn't fit into memory we just make a lesser game. We don't do that. For us, it's about how we can give you the most game ever even though the hardware is over five years old."
Battlefield 3 is released on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 next Friday, 28 October.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...andard-def-bf3
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