Publisher THQ has announced that the multiplayer component of UFC Undisputed 2010 will require a single-use code included with the game.
Players buying used copies will have to pay $5 (£3.50 approx) via the PlayStation Store or Xbox Live Marketplace.
The move is the latest curveball thrown by game makers at the seemingly unstoppable used games market, recently described by Blitz Games cofounder Andrew Oliver as “a much bigger problem than piracy” on console.
Alan Wake debuts highest of last week's new releases, but by far the most popular game is FIFA World Cup 2010.
With just eight per cent of its mentions negative and a whopping 61 per cent positive, the new FIFA appears to be thoroughly appeasing fans, even if, by volume, its mentions are curiously far lower than almost every other game on the list, which comprises this week's top 10 selling games, considering it's at number one.
The Entertainment Consumers Association has described the announced Supreme Court review of Schwarzenegger v. EMA, otherwise known as California’s violent videogames law, as “the single most important challenge [the gaming sector] has ever faced in the US.”
Rumours suggest that Richard Branson’s Virgin brand is to make a significant gaming comeback at E3, unveiling a new online-only service offering “new and unique opportunities” to publishers.
Details of the venture are scarce, though some insight can be gained from Virgin’s current online affiliate programme and its three prize-based PC games, Virgin Casino, Virgin Poker and Virgin Bingo. Founded in 2004, this Virgin Games relies heavily on customer referrals which it rewards with a cut of its revenue.
BioWare has released a patch for Dragon Age: Origins on PS3 which fixes various issues with the in-game store.
As BioWare explains: "This patch will fix the recent crashing that was caused by the upgrade to the 3.3 firmware update. It will also fix the in-game DLC store to show free DLC content redeemed with promo codes and it will also fix the bug with Darkspawn Trophies."
Square Enix is due to make a game announcement this Friday, which the teaser site says will "change Japanese history".
There's no real hint on the site as to what we can expect from the announcement of the secret project, which is in partnership with Yahoo! Japan, although speculation surrounds the possibility of a browser-based or mobile phone title.
Google has revealed the Chrome Web Store, an apps store that lets you install applications directly into your browser - including full-fat videogames such as Lego Star Wars.
The new app store will feature a range of apps, from tools and utilities as well and entertainment and videogames. According to reports, Google has shown Plants vs. Zombies and Lego Star Wars running smoothly in full 3D on the system.
Weary of Yakuza 2's poor sales in the west, Sega was understandably hesitant to release Yakuza 3 outside of Japan. But after much fanfare it eventually did, and seems happy with its reception.
Valve has slapped the second wave of games on Steam for Mac, following the service's Mac debut last week.
GDC Europe organisers have announced the first sessions and speakers for this August’s event, including talks from Playdom, Crytek, Playfish and Sony representatives.
Here’s the initial line-up:
All These Platforms and Business Models: How do I Target My Game?
Speaker: Don Daglow (Don Daglow Interactive Entertainment)
Playdom has signed a two year deal to develop ESPN-branded sports games for social media platforms.
The first two titles in development are expected to launch this autumn on social media sites like Facebook, MySpace, Bebo, Tagged and Hi5 in addition to ESPN.com and Playdom.com. "Mobile extensions" will also be available.
Tecmo Koei CEO Kenji Matsubara has labelled fiscal 2009 a “pretty tough” year for the publisher.
The company reported an operating income of 600 million yen ($6.5m / £4.4m) on sales of 34.5 billion yen ($373.3m / £252.7m). The results were ahead of revised forecasts announced in February, but lower than the company’s initial yearly guidance.
Ratings body PEGI has launched a free iPhone app designed to make it easier for parents to make informed decisions when buying game for their children.
The application enables users to browse the database of all 14,000-plus titles that have received a PEGI rating, and provides information about content and age-suitability.
A survey by media research firm Nielsen has found that the primary driver of PS3 purchase intent is the console’s Blu-ray functionality.
Specific PS3 games play a relatively small role in driving interest in the console, ranking bottom on a list of ten considerations.
Nielsen gathered its data over a three week period surrounding the launch of God Of War III by interviewing over 700 active gamers that didn’t own a PS3 but said they were definitely or probably interested in buying one.
When Foursquare came to town, it set off a slow-motion land grab. Sure, we had heard of Foursquare, even up here in Portsmouth, New Hampshire: it was one of the hot new “social networks” where people over-share every minute of their lives. This time, you were supposed to skip around town and, using your smartphone, “check in” at bars, stores, or other venues. With every stop you earn points; rack up the most check-ins at any one spot and you become the “Mayor” - whatever that means.
Former PlayStation and Atari executive Phil Harrison and ex-Atari CEO and EA veteran David Gardner have teamed up again at London Venture Partners, a new investment group focused on funding “disruptive” game projects.
The pair make up half of company’s founding quartet, alongside former EA VP David Lau-Kee and investment banking veteran Paul Heydon, Develop reports.
Having shot through the MMOG space at a tangent with Football Superstars and Hunter's World, Monumental Games has now set itself an major task for its big 2010 release. It hopes it will deliver the first true 3D MMOG on Facebook, called Little Horrors.
Infinity Ward creative strategist Robert Bowling says Modern Warfare 2’s first DLC pack has broken multiple PlayStation Network download records.
“Thanks to the 1 Million+ PlayStation users who helped the Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Package break day-one and week-one download records on PSN!," he wrote on his Twitter account.
Social gaming firm Playdom has continued its spending spree by acquiring Acclaim, a developer of social networking and downloadable casual games.
Acclaim had been one of the great game publishing brands in the 1980s and '90s before the company's demise. It was picked up by industry veteran Howard Marks in 2007 and relaunched as a free-to-play game maker.
Ubisoft reps said during an investors call today that Microsoft's Natal and Sony's Move controllers are 'revolutionary' and they are 'going in the right direction for the industry'.
"With regards to Natal and Move, we have been investing quite a lot for those machines. We feel that we'll be able to come with technically good products at E3 and the end of the year," they said.
During an investors call today Ubisoft confirmed it will delay the release of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier until Q1 2011.
The game was expected to release later this year. Ubi CEO Yves Guillemot said: "Due to a very competitive environment we've decided to move the game out of the Christmas quarter into the March quarter."
Ubisoft has said 3D gaming will quickly become a major factor in videogames, estimating that around 50% of all new games will be 3D-enabled by 2012.
Ubisoft is to tackle the second-hand game market with a code system that gives purchasers of new games access to download content which second-hand buyers will have to pay for.
During a recent investors call, Ubisoft seniors said: "We are looking very carefully at what is being done by EA regarding what we call the $10 solution and we will probably follow that line at some time in the future."
Ubisoft's stealth action game Assassin's Creed 2 has sold 9 million copies, the publisher confirmed today.
"The ongoing exceptional performance delivered by Assassin's Creed II which sold-in nearly 9 million units during the year," said Ubi in a financial release document earlier today.
Rumours that FarmVille-maker Zynga was set to split from Facebook have been laid to rest by the announcement of a long-term strategic partnership between the two companies.