Games

First iPhone game summit takes shape

While there are more than 10,000 applications for the iPhone, many of the most popular ones are games. A quick glance at the top 25 paid applications reveals that 18 are games; games comprise 14 of the top 25 free iPhone apps as well. And those ratios are likely to hold for the foreseeable future.

That's most likely what led the organizer of the Virtual Goods summit to announce on Tuesday the first iPhone game conference, dubbed the iGames Summit, slated for March 19 in San Francisco.

"The market for iPhone games is exploding, and we're … Read more

Early returns show strong holiday video game console sales

Updated at 5:28 p.m. to include additional data and analyst perspective.

Though the retail economy suffered what appears to be one of the bleakest holiday seasons in recent memory, it looks as though the video games industry bucked that disastrous trend.

That's one conclusion that can be drawn from holiday Xbox 360 sales numbers released by Microsoft Monday, in which the company reported that its console business had the most successful holiday season in its history.

All told, Aaron Greenberg, director of product management for Xbox 360, said Microsoft boosted the Xbox's worldwide sales lead over … Read more

Forrester study: Got game? Not in a recession

Internet and mobile services are expected to score against handheld video game players and satellite radio amid an economic recession, according to results from a Forrester Research survey released Monday.

According to the results, 51 percent of North America consumers surveyed said they planned to curtail technology spending in the coming year, due to the economy. And areas expected to take the greatest hit include handheld video game players, followed by satellite radio, smart phones, video game consoles, and portable GPS devices.

The report noted:

While no device is immune from consumer spending cuts, new devices such as satellite radios … Read more

Yep, Microsoft and Sony sell game consoles too

Remember Sony and Microsoft? No? Well, neither does the average Amazon customer.

According to a release sent out by the online retail giant Friday, the Nintendo Wii and all its accessories dominated video game sales during the holiday shopping rush and not one mention was made of Sony's Playstation 3 or Microsoft's Xbox 360.

"Nintendo Wii dominated the top sellers in video games and hardware, including the Wii console, the Wii remote controller and the Wii nunchuk controller," the release reports.

What about all its competitors? Have they somehow entered the realm of irrelevance?

I'm starting to wonder if they have.… Read more

Tony Hawk talks charity, game development

In mid-December, Forbes.com concluded that pro skateboarder Tony Hawk is the world's third-most influential athlete, trailing only Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong.

For those not all that familiar with skateboarding as a sport, this might come as a surprise, given some of the athletes he came in ahead of--football star Peyton Manning, basketball prodigy LeBron James, and NASCAR champion Dale Earnhardt Jr.

But to the millions of people who have played any of the 10 Tony Hawk video games, the Forbes honor surely came as no surprise. After all, those games have become one of the most successful … Read more

EA to offer 'Spore' DRM-free

Starting Monday, Electronics Arts will sell its popular video game Spore free of any digital rights management restrictions.

It's part of a slew of titles which EA will offer on Valve's Steam distribution platform, according to a report by Ars Technica. Besides Spore, the collection will include Warhammer Online, Need for Speed Undercover, Mass Effect, and FIFA Manager 09. Crysis, Crysis: Warhead, and SiN Episodes: Emergence are already available on the service, and there are more on the way.

Prices for the DRM-free versions are said to be on par with what the games would sell for in … Read more

EA boosts layoffs to 10 percent of workforce

Updated 8:02 a.m. PST with more information about EA's decision to increase the size of its layoffs and with Friday's share price performance.

Game publishing giant Electronic Arts announced Friday that it is expanding the scope of its previously announced layoffs and will cut 10 percent of its workforce, as well as close nine studios and publishing operations and reduce its product lines.

The bulk of the now approximately 1,000 layoffs are expected to be completed by March 31, with the company hoping to save $120 million in annual costs.

In late October, EA had … Read more

Take-Two posts quarterly loss, issues warning

Video game publisher Take-Two Interactive Software posted a wider quarterly loss on Wednesday and forecast a sharp drop in sales revenue for the current quarter.

For the quarter that ended October 31, the company best known for its Grand Theft Auto franchise reported a net loss of $15 million, or 20 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $7.1 million, or 10 cents a share, a year ago. Revenue increased 11 percent to $323.4 million on the sales strength of its Midnight Club: Los Angeles, NBA 2K9, and Grand Theft Auto IV titles.

The company predicted … Read more

Amazon has Prince of Persia for $40 shipped.

Fans of Prince of Persia franchise now have chance to sink their teeth into the latest game in the franchise. Prince of Persia is usually $60, but for today's deal, Amazon is offering the game for $40 with free shipping. GameSpot even gave the game an 8.0, which isn't bad at all. Act fast, this deal expires today.

Click here for Xbox 360

Click here for PS3

-Till next deal, JT