What’s happened in the business of video games this past week …
QUOTE | “Xbox 360 isn’t so good anymore compared to PCs.” — Matt Firor, head of Zenimax Online Studios, talking about why we haven’t seen successful console MMOs on 360 as part of an in-depth Elder Scrolls Online interview.
QUOTE | “There’s a brutality, there’s a violence, but it’s not gratuitous.” — Bruce Straley, game director for Naughty Dog, talking about raising the storytelling bar in the their upcoming title The Last of Us.
QUOTE | “I don’t care how indie you are — once you’ve taken a million bucks from consumers, professionalism isn’t optional.” — Rob Fahey, veteran game journalist, talking about how Polytron refuses to patch Fez on XBLA.
QUOTE | “A great social game is Shakespearean.” — Mark Pincus, CEO of Zynga, talking about how he thinks great social games should offer more than one type of experience for players.
QUOTE | “Is the jump to Unreal Engine 4 graphics really enough to change the retail slump?” — James Brightman, US Editor of GamesIndustry International, talking along with other journalists about whether the current console generation has gone on too long.
STAT | 200 million — Number of registered players for Runescape, the free-to-play MMORPG; players have collected over 28 trillion gold coins so far.
QUOTE | “If you don’t keep experimenting you are dead.” — Riccardo Zacconi, CEO of King.com, talking about the need to keep innovating with game designs.
QUOTE | “The industry itself is undefeatable.” — Seamus Blackley, co-creator of the Xbox, talking about how the gaming industry is the greatest industry out there.
STAT | 1.1 million — Number of Xbox 360 consoles sold in the quarter that ended in June, making it #1 in the US; sales were down from 1.7 million consoles in the same quarter last year.
QUOTE | “I think we’re in a period right now where it is unclear what a publisher is or does.” — Mitch Lasky, venture capitalist and former EA VP, talking about how digital distribution and social networks have weakened publishers.
STAT | Three million — Number of copies of Minecraft for XBLA sold, according to Notch; the game has sold more than 10 million copies across platforms.
QUOTE | “A $US99 Ouya looks like unbeatable value, but up against a $US149 Xbox 360?” — Richard Leadbetter, Eurogamer tech expert, talking about the possibilities for Tegra 3-powered Android console.
STAT | 70 per cent — Percentage of the DC Universe Online audience that plays the game on the PlayStation 3, according to SOE boss John Smedley.
This Week in the Business courtesy of GamesIndustry International
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