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Toy Story 3 regains UK's top spot from StarCraft 2
StarCraft 2 took a slide down the charts this week to fourth, as Toy Story 3 regained the top spot on the UK All Formats chart. There also appears to have been some promotion (the demo, perhaps?) in the region last week for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 because it surged up the charts from eighth to second. According to Chart-Track, Activision-Blizzard's Modern Warfare sequel could potentially overtake Dr Kawashima (aka Brain Age) as the UK's "biggest unit seller" next week. Dance on Broadway, Ubisoft's pseudo-sequel to Just Dance (holding just fine at #6), knows that life is a cabaret and moves up another spot to third. The other chart-topping stalwart, Red Dead Redemption, drops to fifth -- its lowest position since launch. Check out the UK top ten after the break. %Gallery-93421%
Activision Q2 revenues down, earnings up
Activision has released its financial results for the second quarter of 2010, reporting revenues of $967 million. That's down from $1,038 million reported during the same period last year. Net income is up, however, with the company reporting earnings of $219 million, a 12 percent increase over last year's $195 million. Before you get too confused, know that costs were down dramatically, dropping from $820 million in Q2 2009 to $667 million this year, which led to the increased income. The driver behind Activision's results, according to CEO Bobby Kotick, was "strong consumer response" to the company's workhorse brands, World of Warcraft and Call of Duty. The report also mentions that Activision's digital sales "exceeded retail sales for the first time," having grown more than 20 percent year over year. Somehow, we're not terribly surprised. Looking forward, Kotick pointed to StarCraft 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops and the World of Warcraft expansion Cataclysm as potential bright spots for the rest of the year. Specifically, Kotick noted that Black Ops pre-orders are already outpacing the number of Modern Warfare 2 pre-orders at this time last year.
Modern Warfare 2 demo finally hits Xbox Live
Dear Mr. Murray Shalowitz, As you are the sole Xbox 360 owner who has yet to play Modern Warfare 2, we would like to inform you that a demo is now available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Cheers, P.S. A reminder for little Rosie Erickson: A PS3 demo is available as well. Xbox.com: Add Modern Warfare 2 Cliffhanger Demo to your Xbox 360 download queue
Valve apologizes for banning over 12,000 legit Modern Warfare 2 players
The anti-cheating software embedded in Valve's Steamworks platform recently took on a mind of its own, banning over 12,000 non-cheating Modern Warfare 2 players over the past two weeks. The cause for its insatiable ban lust? Valve president Gabe Newell explained in an email to those affected, "the problem was that Steam would fail a signature check between the disk version of a DLL and a latent memory version." See, we were just thinking that that had something to do with it. Newell begged pardon for the erroneous bans, adding "this was our mistake, and I apologize for any frustration or angst it may have caused you." An apology and a swift reversal of the ban aren't all that these users will receive -- Newell promised a giftable copy of Left 4 Dead 2 to all those affected, as well as one copy for themselves, provided they don't already have it. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Modern Warfare 2 subscription message dismissed as 'just a glitch'
The oft-surfacing rumor of Activision's intent to incorporate a pay-to-play plan for the multiplayer portions of its Call of Duty franchise sprung up once again yesterday, when a player reportedly captured video of a hidden Marketplace item titled "Modern Warfare 2 Membership." The buzz was quickly quieted by a Tweet from Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling, who stated, "nobody has to pay to play COD or MW2 multiplayer, nor will they." A more thorough report on the subject of Modern Warfare subscriptions came from Activision's Dan Amrich, who explained, "This video shows just a glitch," further explaining, "since you can access a Live subscription renewal from within the MW2 game interface, it appears some data got jammed between two parts of Live." See, we always said some poor menu would fall into those cracks on the surface of Xbox Live Marketplace. Now we've gotta get it out. Denny! Denny, fire up the backhoe.
Report: Infinity Ward suit updated, claims Activision created 'police state'
According to Kotaku, an amended version of the lawsuit filed by 38 former and current Infinity Ward developers against Activision was recently submitted to a California court. The suit uses a bit stronger language when describing the policies of the monolithic publisher, claiming its agents created a "police state" atmosphere while IW worked on Modern Warfare 2, and would regularly conduct "interrogations" of the studio's members. Despite the increased intensity of these claims, the group has reduced the amount of punitive damages and unpaid bonuses sought from half a billion dollars to $216 million. A trial date for the Infinity Ward Employee Group's case against Activision (and possibly West and Zampella's case, should the judge decide to consolidate the suits) is currently set for May 23, 2011.
Buy Modern Warfare 2 bundle from Direct2Drive, get Modern Warfare free
Digital distributor Direct2Drive is offering a puzzling offer until August 6: purchase the Modern Warfare 2 bundle (which includes the game and both map packs) for $89.99, and get the original Modern Warfare for free.
European PSN releases for July 7
A handful of big ol' games became even bigger this week with a few high-profile DLC releases, such as Modern Warfare 2's "Resurgence Pack," and Dragon Age: Origins' "Leiliana's Song." Also, LittleBigPlanet gets a booster shot in the form of a Marvel Level and Costume Kit, and the new and improved version of Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge hits the storefront. Click past the jump for the full release list! Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)
Activision studios head brings development strategy into focus
"It doesn't make sense anymore," Activision executive VP of worldwide studios Dave Stohl declared to us in a small office, hidden away from the noisy E3 show floor. "You've really got to focus." The executive, who oversees every development studio that Activision owns, was reflecting on the old business model that encouraged studios to take on multiple projects at once. Today, the industry's leading third-party publisher has a new mantra: one game per studio. "People want the freedom to put all their resources against the big opportunity, and that's what we're trying to do," Stohl explained during our conversation at last month's show. We wondered if the shift in strategy was less ingenuity and more a sign of the times. Last year's holiday season was headlined by two major events: the slowdown of music game sales and the ridiculous success of Modern Warfare 2.
Modern Warfare 2 'Resurgence Package' DLC strikes PS3/PC on July 6
Modern Warfare 2's second map pack, the "Resurgence Package," will be ending its brief stint of Xbox Live exclusivity next month. On July 6th, the map collection will be available for PC and the North American PlayStation Network. (European PS3 owners will have to wait until July 7th.) The DLC will likely carry the same price tag as its predecessor: a lofty $15. Included in the package are five maps, including two environments from Call of Duty 4: Vacant -- the wide open Russian office complex from CoD4 Strike -- the urban town surrounded by hotels from CoD4 Carnival -- an abandoned carnival area with a Ferris wheel, fun house and other attractions Trailer Park -- full of "super tight corridors" and featuring a pool Fuel -- a "sniper haven" based in and around an oil refinery It's too bad Infinity Ward couldn't get the new map pack out in time for the Fourth of July weekend. We're pretty certain we know exactly what CoD fans are planning to do then.%Gallery-93049%
Earn double XP in Modern Warfare 2 this Memorial Day weekend
Wait, you're telling us that you still haven't hit 10th Prestige? Is this some sort of joke? Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been out for like, a hundred years. Whatever the reason for your pathetic, amateurish ranking, you can give yourself a boost by playing during this three-day Memorial Day weekend, when Infinity Ward will be offering double experience across all of the game's cornucopia of platforms. There, now you have no excuse. Unless you're having, like, a cookout or pool party during the extended weekend. Or if you're going to a baseball game. Or if you're going to the beach ... Those are all pretty great excuses, we suppose.
Call of Duty: Black Ops to feature dedicated PC servers
In a recent interview with UK gaming mag PC Zone, Treyarch head Mark Lamia announced that Call of Duty: Black Ops -- unlike the last Call of Duty game on PC -- will feature dedicated servers for PC players. "I think dedicated servers are excellent. I don't see any reason not to see them unless ... well, I just don't see any reason not to," Lamia responded when asked about Black Ops' PC iteration, reports CVG. Covering his bases (and likely not trying to insult Infinity Ward's reasoning behind not supporting dedicated servers), Lamia added, "We do work very hard to reconcile the desire to manipulate and modify those dedicated servers with offering them the persistent experience and benefits that the console system provides ... so people can run dedicated servers and also participate in the communal experience the console players get to have, given they're all on first-party servers." And with that, it would seem that Treyarch will give us a chance to officially leap through the air while raining an unlimited supply of explosives on the ground below us when the game arrives this November. Hooray?
Modern Warfare 2 Resurgence Map Pack detailed [Update: Now with screens!]
Click image to amuse yourself with some new screens Xbox Live's Major Nelson had Infinity Ward "creative strategist" Robert Bowling on his podcast recently to talk about the upcoming Resurgence Map Pack for Modern Warfare 2. Set to release on June 3 on Xbox Live, the pack will be priced at 1200 ($15) -- the same as its predecessor, the Stimulus Pack. Resurgence will feature maps old and new, including two Call of Duty 4 maps and three new locations: Vacant -- the wide open Russian office complex from CoD4 Strike -- the urban town surrounded by hotels from CoD4 Carnival -- an abandoned carnival area with a Ferris wheel, fun house and other attractions Trailer Park -- full of "super tight corridors" and featuring a pool ("Mobile Estates," Bowling calls it) Fuel -- a "sniper haven" based in and around an oil refinery Bowling says that the new maps will be tied to specific playlists, just like the Stimulus maps. With the Resurgence collection, however, it's possible that all of the maps will be available in every playlist, as long as "demand is high." And, as with the previous pack, the new maps will be exclusive to Xbox 360 for a short time before coming to PC and PS3. Update: We've got images of all five maps, which you can check out in the gallery below or by clicking the image in the post. Enjoy! %Gallery-93049%
Modern Warfare 2 'Resurgence Pack' adding five more maps on June 3
In what might be the briefest press release we've ever received from a major publisher announcing a new chunk of DLC for an über-successful game, Activision revealed that another set of five multiplayer maps for Modern Warfare 2 will drop on Xbox Live on June 3. We know two things about said maps so far: They're coming in a set called the "Resurgence Pack," and their release will be heralded by two double XP weekends on May 28 and June 4. Now, that's what we know. What we assume is that the pack will feature a mix of new maps and renovated versions of Call of Duty 4 maps -- perhaps a bit more of the latter, given the title of the bundle. What we also assume is that the "Resurgence Pack" will carry the $15 price tag of the "Stimulus Package" (it worked well enough before). We'll contact people in the know to see if we can squeeze out any firmer details.
Hands-on: Blur (single player)
click to enlarge Bizarre Creations is known for its racing expertise, honed in the great Project Gotham Racing series, and their latest title, Blur, is no exception. The arcade sensibilities of Bizarre's own Geometry Wars and the underrated (I said it!) The Club add a few new colors to the mix, but the driving is as solid as ever -- as you'll know if you've been playing the multiplayer beta. The real key to Blur, though, is the much-discussed social features. Bizarre has more or less perfected console racing over all of its past iterations, and so when we were invited to Activision HQ last week to check out Blur's single-player components, the focus wasn't so much on the how of racing, but the why. %Gallery-92682%
FIFA World Cup maintains defense, holds top spot on UK charts
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa held its top spot on the UK all-formats chart for a second week in a row. Meanwhile, like a good showgirl, Wii-exclusive Just Dance worked its way back into second, pushing Super Street Fighter IV down the stairs -- all the way to sixth. Modern Warfare 2 got back into the fight this week and reached third place, thanks to "energetic promotions centered around the special edition versions," according to Chart-Track. The release of the "Stimulus Package" maps on other platforms probably didn't hurt, either. Wii Fit Plus and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 round out the top five. The complete UK top 10 can be found after the break. Source – FIFA World Cup Scores 2nd Week at No1 [GFK Chart-Track] Source – Latest UK Software Charts [GFK Chart-Track]
Call of Duty has delivered 17M map packs, but continued success 'only' through retail, Kotick says
Speaking during an investor call today, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick reflected on the publisher's multi-pronged strategy behind the immense success of the Call of Duty franchise. A key -- but still growing -- element has been digital content distribution in the form of downloadable map packs. "Life-to-date on the Call of Duty franchise, we have digitally delivered almost 17 million map packs, which doesn't include the PS3 Modern Warfare 2 downloadable content that just launched," Kotick said. "To date, our audiences have played a staggering 1.75 billion hours of online multiplayer Call of Duty games." Despite this notable impact, Kotick made it clear that Activision would still lean more heavily on event-driven retail releases. "While our direct-to-consumer digital business is growing, our continued success will come only through the tremendous support of our fantastic retail partners." Having created the "the largest video game retail launch in history" with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Activision isn't hasty to alter the winning plan. "We have every intention of doing this again this year with Call of Duty: Black Ops," Kotick declared.
European PSN releases for May 5
Our world's been flipped, turned upside-down! Yes, European PSN updates are now going to take place on Wednesday, which means we're going to have to find something else in Thursday to get excited about. As we ponder this dilemma, check out some of the new stuff that drops this week, including Modern Warfare 2's "Stimulus Package," Kick-Ass: The Game, Feeding Frenzy 2, and ... the soundtrack for Flower? Yeah, okay. Sure. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)
Final Fantasy XIII, Bayonetta, Modern Warfare 2, more for $30 each at Kmart
Kmart isn't a name we turn to often for game deals, but the retailer has made a pretty strong case for our continued attention, with a bunch of limited-time deals that are, frankly, a little ridiculous. How about paying for just the good half of Final Fantasy XIII? At $30, that's essentially what Kmart is offering. Time-release RPGs not for you? How about Bayonetta, Metro 2033, or Modern Warfare 2 for $30 each? Even Nier's been marked down to $44.99, though that game is ridiculous on its own merits. These deals are only available through May 10, and can be found both online and in-store. See the full list of weekly discounts after the break. [Via Slickdeals]
PSN Tuesday: MW2's Stimulus Package
Welcome to PSN Tuesday. It's time for the Modern Warfare 2 troopers on PlayStation 3 to get their hands on the multi-million selling Stimulus Package. It's available now. ... Wow, you're still here reading? Okay, um, cool! PSP owners can grab Fat Princess: Fistful of Cake or What Did I Do To Deserve This My Lord! 2. Check out the full update after the break. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.) %Gallery-89046%
