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by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:59- Categories:
- DCEmu
Developers still trying to make blockbusters with a tenth of the budget
Medium-sized games do not exist anymore, claims the creative director behind Assassin’s Creed 3.
Speaking in an interview with develop, Ubisoft Montreal's Alex Hutchinson said many mid-tier developers use to make smaller licensed games for consoles as their bread and butter, but these deals had now gone to Facebook and other social media channels.
“They use to be licensed games and slightly crappy games,” he said.
“I say that as someone who worked on those, and not as a judgment call. It use to be the way if your studio was coming up you would get a deal to do Barbie’s Racing Ride, and you would try to build some tech and experience and roll that into a bigger game.
“I think all those licensing deals have gone to Facebook and other social media channels. I don’t think they see the value in a $60 box product anymore.”
http://www.develop-online.net/news/4...-exist-anymore
...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:56- Categories:
- DCEmu
Unite 12: 22 Cans boss on how now is better than ever for start-ups and creativity
Renowned games designer and 22 Cans boss Peter Molyneux has claimed that games are the only entertainment medium left that can surprise.
He revealed he has lost faith in the likes of TV and cinema, leaving him optimistic that games can lead the way in the future of entertainment.
Speaking on stage at the Unite 12 Unity user conference, Molyneux also revealed his belief that in that context, and with tools like Unity making games development more accessible, now is a better time than ever for start-up studios.
"I'm bored of movies. I'm bored of TV shows," said Molyneux. "We're in the last entertainment industry that truly can surprise people.
"In today's world of mass-blandness we can make things that are unique that have never been seen before. We are the last that can do that."
http://www.develop-online.net/news/4...t-can-surprise
...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:53- Categories:
- PC News
Microsoft recently caused quite a stir in the industry when it unveiled its Surface tablet. Much of the media rushed to make comparisons with Apple’s dominant device, the iPad, while others speculated on a possible rivalry between Microsoft and its various partners.
In fact, according to Microsoft’s director of partner strategy and programmes, Janet Gibbons, the device is intended to be a showcase of the very best that Windows 8 can offer.
“We announced it just to put the design point out there and to show what’s possible,” Gibbons told PCR. “It really opens up the opportunity for people to think differently about PCs and what PCs have to look like.”
GfK’s business group director, Carl West notes that this policy of using a single showcase device to excite the market is one that could pay off.
“As a proof of concept I think it’s a good move,” said West. “I think it’s an opportunity for other vendors to see and test the reaction of the markets based on what Microsoft has done.”
Meanwhile, Ronan de Renesse, principal analyst at Analysys Mason’s research division, dismisses the idea that Microsoft would be creating rivalries with its other vendor partners.
“It’s about showcasing Windows 8 rather than really being competitive in the tablet market against its partners. I think that when you look at other PC markets, if Microsoft lost those partners in other markets there could be a detrimental impact for it. Even though it’s quite comfortably settled in those markets, there’s still some risk.”
Regardless of whether or not it will create rivalries, the fact is that the tablet market is now too big to ignore. Figures from Analysys Mason predict that the market for tablet and e-reader devices will grow to see 140m units sold in 2017 compared to 33.5 million this year.
This trend is reflected in GfK’s sales figures, which track volume going through indirect channels.
“Just looking at the year to date in volume terms, this market has doubled,” explains West. “We only look at retail sales, which account for around 55 per cent of the tablet market and around 85 per cent of the notebook market, but we still see that tablets outstrip notebooks in sales volume. It is a major form factor. It’s already overtaken both notebooks and netbooks combined. Mobility is tablets.”
These figures are corroborated by Entatech’s commercial group vice president Jon Atherton, who has recorded strong growth in the tablet category: “There’s been a massive growth spurt over the last couple of years, obviously mainly due to the iPad. I think the Microsoft Surface product will be unique and a real contender against the iPad.”
With all this predicted growth, de Renesse feels that there’s room for Microsoft to make its mark: “Apple’s got around 90 per cent market share, it’s really in the lead here so there’s definitely room for a second player in the market. I think that with the Surface, Microsoft is showing that it’s really after a share of that market and I think it has good chances.
“If it delivers on the promises, if it delivers on the OS and the price point is correct then they will sell.”
So what is it that makes the Surface so important? Well, the fact is that the tablet category is no longer complementary to traditional PC usage models – it is supplanting them. Businesses have been aware of the process that has been termed ‘consumerisation’ and ‘Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)’ for some time, and it is increasingly a concept that ties in with the Connected Home.
“I don’t think the desktop is dead yet, but there’s definitely a bit of cannibalisation coming from tablets. I think the tablet primarily is a home companion device, so the use of the tablet is either in the home or the office,” observes de Renesse. “It’s very nomadic, so the connectivity aspect in terms of being connected all the time like a mobile phone is not as important.”
This idea of having a device that essentially moves between two networks supports consumer models of the connected home – a concept that has become increasingly popular.
“The connected home is reality,” states West. “It’s very much a reality at this stage. Networking infrastructure in the home is growing, consumption devices like tablets are growing and the whole concept of the connected home is a viable industry now. If you go in to any retailer at the moment, you’ll see an increase in these products.”
So it is with these developments in mind that we must view Microsoft’s recent changes in strategy. It has shifted its Office software to a subscription-based pricing model, brought out a new tablet and is moving towards selling software via an App store – all these are paradigm changes for the software giant.
“Steve Ballmer has stated that this is a going to be a new era for Microsoft and for our partners,” said Gibbons.
“The reason we say that is because, if you’ll remember, Windows 95 really pulled home computing into the mainstream and we feel ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:24- Categories:
- Android News
Nikon’s newest camera, the Coolpix S800c, runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread and has Wi-Fi.
What with every smartphone having a built in camera and an array of apps to share photos with, the humble compact camera has somewhat been left behind. With Nikon’s latest offering, it hopes to draw web-savvy photographers back to the camera market.
Nikon has labeled the Coolpix S800c as “the Android-powered camera that loves your social life as much as you do”. With Google+, Facebook and Twitter built-in, as well as a number of photo-related apps available, this compact camera really is aimed at social networkers.
The Coolpix S800c features a 3.5-inch 819k-dot touchscreen, a 16MP CMOS sensor, 10x optical 4.5-45mm lens, and 1080p video capture.
"Just like a smartphone or tablet device, the camera has the opportunity to run camera-specific photo and video applications, yet enables the various benefits of shooting with a camera," said Nikon in a statement.
"The S800c provides access to a vast world of applications for games, productivity and personal communication/email, including Nikon's photo storage and sharing site."
Nikon’s Coolpix S800c will be available in black and while from September 27th and will be priced at £379.99.
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...-camera/028993 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:21- Categories:
- PC News
Ubisoft believes that just one in ten PC gamers buy their games legally whilst the rest obtain them illegally for free.
The publisher has been working on growing its share in the resurging PC market and considering the figures, believes that free-to-play is the only way to generate revenue from its titles moving forward.
Ubisoft's CEO Yves Guillemot made the comments at this year's Gamescom event, which attracted over 275,000 attendee's and 600 games firms from around the world.
Speaking to news site GamesIndustry International, Guillemot said: "We want to develop the PC market quite a lot and F2P is really the way to do it."
"It's a way to get closer to your customers, to make sure you have a revenue. On PC it's only around five to seven per cent of the players who pay for F2P, but normally on PC it's only about five to seven per cent who pay anyway, the rest is pirated. It's around a 93-95 per cent piracy rate, so it ends up at about the same percentage. The revenue we get from the people who play is more long term, so we can continue to bring content," the CEO continued.
It follows the news that fellow publisher Crytek - who has also struggled with piracy issues recently - announced that all of its future releases would be free-to-play.
There is no doubt that with piracy levels sitting at 95%, piracy is a key issue within the games industry and one that is being tackled from a number of different angles by developers and publishers, whether it is advanced piracy-protection technology or - as Guillemot believes - adopting the F2P model for future releases.
http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/read/...pirates/028997 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:20- Categories:
- Apple iPhone
Verizon Wireless bans staff holidays between September 21-30. I wonder why….?
US carrier Verizon Wireless has blacked out holidays for all of its staff from September 21st until September 30th.
Add this to the speculation that the Apple iPhone 5 will arrive on September 21, and the quick-witted among you may be able to spot a pattern.
With the official announcement widely believed to be scheduled for September 12, a release of the new iPhone nine days later falls in line with Apple’s previous history with iPhone launches.
From the first iPhone through to iPhone 4, the gap between official announcement and availability in the States has been between nine and 12 days.
Are you getting the new iPhone and what do you expect from it?
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...mber-21/019109 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:18- Categories:
- Windows Phone
Sixty per cent of Windows Phones worldwide are Nokia devices.
A new study shows that Windows Phone is growing, and Nokia is gaining an increasing share of that market.
The study, conducted by Localytics, shows that since January the number of WinPho devices has grown by 312 per cent worldwide and 273 per cent in the US.
Meanwhile, Nokia’s share of the global Windows Phone market has gone from 22 per cent to nearly 60 percent. Equally impressive is the statistic that its US shares has leapt from zero per cent to 32 per cent.
However, while Nokia's star is on the rise, Samsung and HTC's US Windows Phone market share has fallen.
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...-market/019112 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:16- Categories:
- DCEmu
Thirty-six per cent of teenagers are unable to go 10 minutes without checking their phones.
A survey by free messaging app TextPlus, says that 50 per cent of teens couldn't live without their mobile devices for a week.
They would, like, literally die.
Of the 600 respondents aged between 13 and 17, 36 per cent said they aren't able to last 10 minutes without checking their phones.
Among this group, texting is still tops, with 61 per cent saying they couldn't survive without texting - more than any other activity they perform on their phones.
With this apparently essential need to text, it is little wonder that 52 per cent of teenagers said they use their phones regardless of the environment - 37 per cent check their devices on the toilet and 20 per cent do it in church.
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...mobiles/019114 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:14- Categories:
- Apple iPhone
Marissa Mayer wants to leave BlackBerry behind and get an Apple device for every employee.
BlackBerry is currently the smartphone of choice for employees at Yahoo, however many employees have an iPhone or Android handset as a second phone for personal use.
According to All Things D, new CEO Marissa Mayer (pictured) has declared that iPhones (or potentially Android devices) for everybody is a distinct possibility.
It’ll be expensive (just like her recent statement that there should be free food for staff at Yahoo's larger offices) but it will be popular and keeping all employees on a single platform might help boost productivity.
Regardless of which platform Yahoo decides on, the aim is to improve the bottom line which should make stockholders happy, as well as the manufacturer that gets the contract.
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...veryone/019117 ...by Published on August 22nd, 2012 22:12- Categories:
- DCEmu
The UK festival season is in full swing right now, with the likes of Wireless, Global Gathering, and V invoking superstars from around the globe to perform to thousands of merrymakers.
And with such an excited atmosphere, revelers will look to their mobile phones to capture the moment with videos and photos, updating friends on social networks, and regrouping should someone wander off.
Given all of that, mobile network giffgaff has found one in ten festival-goers have lost or wrecked their phones at festivals this year, and when combined with thefts, this results in £130m worth of damages – equivalent to 650,000 phones.
Data also shows around £14m worth of call credit is wasted, while a quarter of people would have to pay out £300 on a lost or damaged device.
However, mobiles were only the third item on the missing list, trailing behind 22 per cent and 19 per cent for lost clothes and friends, respectively.
http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/...ch-year/019118 ...- Search DCEmu
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