If you follow VentureBeat but don’t regularly check our GamesBeat site, here’s a list of the best video game stories we ran over the last seven days that you may have missed.
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You’ll also find a breakdown of game investments for 2012 from GamesBeat’s Dean Takahashi, reviews of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, and Dead Space 3.
D.I.C.E.:
- Journey dominates the 2013 D.I.C.E. Awards (full winner list)
- An interview with Jenova Chen: How Journey’s creator went bankrupt and won game of the year
- Qualcomm is ready to deliver mobile users a real gaming platform (interview)
- Gearbox Software’s Pitchford on being a magician & the importance of offering choices
- Borderlands 2 developer: Raising the level cap could break our game (interview)
- Valve’s Gabe Newell argues for PC gaming in the living room — but Apple is scary
- Ubisoft’s Xavier Poix spells out lessons from Wii U launch games (interview)
- Words With Friends co-creator Paul Bettner starts a studio to focus on Ouya console games (exclusive interview)
- Why the creation of ‘transmedia project’ Defiance terrified game developers and TV show makers
- Heavy Rain maker argues that games need to grow up — and offers nine ways to make that happen
- Sledgehammer Games’ Glen Schofield on using everyday inspirations for making games
- ‘Star Wars’ director J.J. Abrams and game maker Gabe Newell: We’re working together on a game
- David Ko puts up the ‘guard rails’ at Zynga to keep costs under control (interview)
- Zynga to close CityVille 2 as it shows no mercy for weak games
News:
- The DeanBeat: After Zynga’s crash, game investments dive 42 percent in 2012
- Never-ending Xenomorphs — Get the Aliens: Colonial Marines Season Pass for $29.99
- Ouya planning for yearly updates for its Android-based console
- The ECA names troubled HipHopGamer as the ‘voice’ of gamers
- Director Brett Ratner (the anti-J.J. Abrams) adapting Farmville for television
- Activision CEO: Slow Wii U sales a ‘challenge’ for Skylanders
- Activision Blizzard beats earnings expectations as Call of Duty and Skylanders blast rivals
- Shocking: Ubisoft releasing new Assassin’s Creed this year with hero and setting
- Ubisoft now bringing Rayman Legends to Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3 — Wii U version delayed until Sept.
- Assassin’s Creed III ships 12M, Far Cry 3 ships 4.5M — Ubisoft has $1B quarter
- Steam quietly fixes bug that makes your private game info public
- Game industry pros list their most-wanted games of 2013
- Analyst: ‘Highly unlikely’ that Microsoft blocks used games on next Xbox
- Bethesda update adds HD textures to Skyrim’s three expansions on Steam
- Goodbye, Zaeed: Mass Effect voice actor Robin Sachs dead at 61
- Ex-People Can Fly developers reveal their new horror game, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
- Chumba World Kickstarter wants to bring online gambling to the MMO crowd (exclusive)
- Jon Shafer’s At the Gates: New strategy studio Conifer Games is starting small but has huge ambitions
- Take-Two CEO confident about publisher’s outlook despite industry obstacles
- New physical video game sales account for less than 50% of a $14 billion market in 2012
- Take-Two boss claims the Grand Theft Auto V delay has nothing to do with the next-gen consoles
- XCOM: Enemy Unknown leads publisher Take-Two to strong fiscal third quarter
- EA (‘the worst company in America’) was the best-reviewed publisher of 2012
- Zynga gets its mojo back with higher-than-expected sales and a small Q4 profit
- Sony ditches ad agency responsible for ‘Michael’ commercial — hires Google Chrome marketers
- Atari secures financing to stay afloat while it evaluates strategic options
- The biggest game releases of 2013
- Exclusive: Minecraft’s Notch no longer funding Psychonauts 2
- Pikmin 3 will let you play while your significant other watches TV (updated)
- Madden NFL 13′s prediction for the Super Bowl was scary accurate
- IGN gets a new home under new owners Ziff Davis
- In the nick of time, American McGee’s Akaneiro hits Kickstarter funding target
Mobile News:
- Educational app dev Intellijoy finds success in casual gaming with Rescue Roby (exclusive)
- Green Throttle makes it easy for developers to add controller support to Android games
- Wikipad’s 7-inch Android gaming tablet will hit retailers in spring for $249
- The Force in your flippers: Star Wars Pinball coming soon for iPad and Android tablets
- Amazon launches its own virtual currency for Kindle Fire: ‘Amazon Coins’
Interviews:
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- Can live speedruns compete with e-sports? (interview)
- Veteran designer returns to online games with Camelot Unchained (interview)
Reviews:
- Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time saves this capable raccoon from becoming history (review)
- Dead Space 3 is a disturbing ride from beginning to end (review)
- Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch: Stupid combat mars a poignant tale (review)
Previews:
- Skylanders: Swap Force is Activision’s next big bet on hybrid toy-games (preview)
- Brave female survivors break stereotypes in The Last of Us (hands-on preview)
- Mirror of Fate brings some humor back to the Castlevania series (hands-on preview)
Pieces of Flair: