The average US PlayStation Network user is male and 28 years old, but the service’s audience is expanding, according to Eric Lempel, the director of PSN operations at Sony Computer Entertainment America.
“Right now, it’s primarily male. The average age is 28 years old, in usually the middle- to higher-income range. They over-index against those with graduate degrees,” he told Video Business.
A study by independent warranty provider SquareTrade has found that Nintendo’s Wii is the most reliable of the current generation home consoles, followed by Sony’s PS3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360.
For its newly released report, titled Game Console Failure Rates, SquareTrade analysed failure rates for over 16,000 new game consoles covered under its warranties.
The company found the Wii to be nine times more reliable than the Xbox 360 and four times more reliable than the PS3.
Here’s the funny thing about Kind Of Bloop: it’s not funny.
Format: Wii
Release: Out now
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Retro Studios
See more screenshots
As expected, Microsoft has announced a series of Xbox 360 related price cuts in Japan.
From September 10, the Xbox 360 Elite will retail for 29,800 yen ($321/£199), down from 39,800 yen. The unit will no longer ship with an HDMI cable.
You probably wouldn’t want to watch the recent Star Trek film on a PSP. And even if you did, you would have to concede that something of its dazzling spectacle would be lost during the compression down from the all-encompassing cinema screen to a small LCD. Should we have similar expectations regarding the way that games are played? Sure, few consumers will be able to climb into a bespoke Forza 3 gaming pod, but is it unreasonable to assume that players know that the intended experience might be found behind a force-feedback wheel?
Norway-based MMO developer Funcom has opened a new studio in Montreal, Canada.
Under the leadership of Funcom Montreal CEO Ole Schreiner, the studio will contribute to a number of titles currently in development, including Age Of Conan expansion pack Rise Of The Godslayer and new MMO The Secret World.
Speaking of the lessons learned from the release of Rockstar’s downloadable Grand Theft Auto episode, The Lost And Damned, Take-Two chief financial officer Ben Feder has declared that “retail is the channel for the foreseeable future.”
Take-Two has settled the class action lawsuit brought against the publisher by investors over the infamous 'Hot Coffee' modification contained in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.
The Hot Coffee controversy centred on the discovery of a sex minigame in GTA: San Andreas, which was disabled but left within the game's code. The Hot Coffee modification enabled users to access the minigame in the PC version of the title, and console hacking tools enabled the minigame to be played in the console versions.
Take-Two recorded a significant loss and drop in revenues during the third fiscal quarter ended July 31, 2009.
Net loss for the third quarter was $55.5 million (£34.3m), compared to a profit of $51.8 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2008. Net revenue was down 68 per cent, from $433.8 million to $138.6 million (£85.8m).
Microsoft’s Xbox 360 recorded a 43 per cent week-on-week sales increase in the UK during the week ended Saturday, August 29, GfK Chart-Track has told us.
The rise in weekly sales is largely attributable to the £30 Xbox 360 Elite price cut introduced by Microsoft on August 28, which was timed to coincide with the beginning of a bank holiday weekend.
Microsoft is to hold a news conference in Japan tomorrow when it is expected to announce an Xbox 360 price cut in the country.
While the exact date that the Japanese price cut will become effective isn’t yet clear, other parts of the Asia-Pacific region will see Xbox 360 price reductions from September 10, according to Microsoft Hong Kong’s Julie Leong.
Format: 360, PC, PS3 (version tested)
Release: Out now (360, PS3), September 18 (PC)
Publisher: Square Enix Europe
Developer: Rocksteady Studios
Click here to view more screenshots.
Nintendo has given Wii Fit Plus a North American release date of October 4.
Billed as an “enhanced version” of Wii Fit, which sold over 18 million copies in its first year of availability, the title will replace its predecessor at retail upon launch.
Presenting E206 and its cover star, PS3 Slim, in which we get the inside story on the console that could turn the platform’s fortunes around.
Sony’s Shuhei Yoshida and Andrew House explain the thinking behind hardware that, in the US at least, is half the price it was launched at three years ago. They also give us insight into what lies ahead for software headed to the PlayStation family of consoles, while several prominent developers and industry commentators give their perspective on what they see in PS3.
Nintendo has dropped the 500 Wii Points fee (around £3.50) previously required to download the Wii Internet Channel.
The company also announced plans to reimburse those who previously paid for the service with a free NES title to be launched in late October via the Wii’s Virtual Console.
While Nintendo has released numerous DSi-specific downloadable games via its DSiWare service, a new report suggests that the platform holder is prepared to let third-party publishers take the lead in offering DSi-only retail software beginning this fall.
Batman: Arkham Asylum has debuted atop the UK all formats chart during the week ended August 29, in the process becoming publisher Eidos’ biggest all formats number one since Who Wants To Be A Millionaire back in 2000.
Bob Bates and Tim Langdell have both stepped down from their roles on the International Game Developers Association’s board of directors.
Bates departed his role as IGDA co-chair after more than six years on the board to work on a “dream project.” Bates served in multiple roles during his time on the board, including chair of several committees, secretary, vice chairman and chairman, and during his tenure the non-profit membership organisation grew from 5,000 members to over 13,000.
The Walt Disney Company has agreed to acquire superheroes stable Marvel Entertainment and its portfolio of over 5,000 characters in a stock and cash transaction.
Based on the closing price of Disney stock on Friday, August 28, the transaction value is $50 per Marvel share or approximately $4 billion (£2.46b). Under the terms of the agreement, Marvel shareholders would receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own.
Shadow Complex has broken the first week Xbox Live Arcade download record, having been purchased over 200,000 times during its first seven days of availability.
[Update: SCEE looking into options to bring the compilation to Europe]
Sony Computer Entertainment America has announced God Of War Collection for PS3.
Rockstar Games will release Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars and music title Beaterator for iPhone and iPod touch this fall.
Ubisoft has announced that Assassin’s Creed producer Jade Raymond will manage its new Toronto, Canada-based studio when it opens later this year.
Under the governance of Yannis Mallat, CEO of Ubisoft’s Montreal and Toronto studios, Raymond will oversee day-to-day operations at the new development house.
Nintendo and Sony have made fresh moves to curb piracy on their gaming platforms.
Nintendo has expanded its anti-piracy team with the appointment of Neil Boyd as European anti-piracy counsel. Boyd joins the platform holder from Warner Brothers, where directed the firm’s anti-piracy strategy. He will be assisted by Jonathan Tully and Matthias Damm, Nintendo’s European anti-piracy legal advisors.
