Intel is trying hard to push its Intel Atom Developer program to encourage developers to make games targeted at Netbooks. Their latest promotion is a game design competition organised by The Game Creators. The design guidelines say...

In an emotional company blog post yesterday, CEO Matt Mihaly announced that Sparkplay has laid off all but two staff and looks likely to go bust.I’ve added it to the Job Loss Tracker. Sparkplay operates Eternal Earth,...

Critics around the world equate video games with crime and the causes of crime. They routinely blame games for being “murder simulators” or for desensitizing our children to violence.* If that was true, it would be a...

I got in a bit of trouble for my post Be careful what you wish for: UK games industry gets parity with films as government abolishes the Film Council. My broad point was that on issues such...

GAMESbrief is about to go through a revamp. It started two years ago as an experiment in whether I would write regularly and whether anyone would want to read it. Two years later the answer to the...

Joystiq reports that High Voltage has laid off 20-30 staff. High Voltage was behind The Conduit and it’s most recent title, Tournament of Legends, was not well received. Joystiq suggests more layoffs may follow. Added to the...

GamaSutra ran a story yesterday about why Activision has no female heroes. The answer: because focus groups say so. It’s a good read on how some publishers struggle with the creative process. And here’s my take on...