January 9: Bubble Safari Ocean on top of this week’s fastest-growing Facebook games

Bubble Safari Ocean on top of this week’s fastest-growing Facebook games:
Zynga’s Bubble Safari Ocean was this week’s fastest-growing Facebook game by monthly active users, taking in 4.2 million MAU for a 22 percent gain.

January 9: PopCap, Hasbro announce Bejeweled ‘face-to-face’ games

PopCap, Hasbro announce Bejeweled ‘face-to-face’ games:

Toy and board game company Hasbro today announced it has obtained the license to develop and distribute a wide range of physical games based on game developer EA PopCap’s properties.

January 9: Adam Jaffe opens up about Playtika’s Playground affiliate program

Adam Jaffe opens up about Playtika’s Playground affiliate program:
Late last year, Slotomania developer Playtika launched its new affiliate program, Playground. We recently sat down with Playtika’s User Acquisitions Group Leader Adam Jaffe to talk about Playground and how it’s furthering Slotomania’s presence in the social games space.

January 9: Century 21 CMO: Social games are prime property for real estate marketing

Century 21 CMO: Social games are prime property for real estate marketing:
Today, Century 21 is wrapping up its latest marketing campaign in the social game scene; a branded fireplace The Sims Social’s players can put in their Sims’ homes in order to earn virtual currency and expand their property.

January 9: Brandon Ramsey on creating snackable sports betting game, Fanhood Sports

Brandon Ramsey on creating snackable sports betting game, Fanhood Sports:
Late last year, developer Fanhood launched Fanhood Sports on Facebook, providing users with a casual sports betting social casino game. We sat down to talk with Fanhood Founder and CEO Brandon Ramsey to talk about what Fanhood Sports does differently from other social casino games, as well as his thoughts on where social casino games are headed.

January 9: Facebook to report public app usage in tiers instead of specific numbers

Facebook to report public app usage in tiers instead of specific numbers:
Facebook today announced changes to the way it reports user counts for apps and games that integrate with its platform, providing a ranking and a user tier rather than monthly active and daily active users rounded to the nearest ten-thousand, as it did previously.

January 9: Pocket Gems publishing Amazing Ants on iOS

Pocket Gems publishing Amazing Ants on iOS:
Social mobile studio Pocket Gems today announced it’s launching developer Twyngo‘s debut game, Amazing Ants for iOS.

January 9: Pachter: Nintendo weakness contributes to 11% decline in December

Pachter: Nintendo weakness contributes to 11% decline in December: The analyst's forecast also puts the blame on "gamer fatigue", noting a 20% decline in Call of Duty sales

January 9: US bankruptcy court clarifies bidding on THQ assets

US bankruptcy court clarifies bidding on THQ assets: Updated: Electronic Arts named as another interested party as publisher opens up to being sold piecemeal

January 9: Chinese games industry hits $9.7 billion in 2012

Chinese games industry hits $9.7 billion in 2012: Online gaming accounts for 90 per cent of the industry, mobile a distant second

January 9: Boa Compra offers route to Brazil for European devs

Boa Compra offers route to Brazil for European devs: Online publishing and payments company opens Lisbon office, actively seeking partnerships

January 9: Three brothers form Hippo Entertainment in Middlesbrough

Three brothers form Hippo Entertainment in Middlesbrough: Darren, Jason and Matt Falcus previously at Team 17

January 9: Trip Hawkins opening new London studio with ex-Moshi Monsters producer

Trip Hawkins opening new London studio with ex-Moshi Monsters producer: Will focus on educational games; attracted by talent and financial benefits of UK

January 9: Xbox Live: expect more TV ads

Xbox Live: expect more TV ads: Microsoft touts NUads success, notes that "you can expect more investment from us"

January 9: Windows 8 has sold 60 million licenses

Windows 8 has sold 60 million licenses: The Windows Store also surpasses 100 million app downloads

January 9: Apple poised to launch cheaper iPhone - report

Apple poised to launch cheaper iPhone - report: New device targeted at emerging markets could be released by the end of the year

January 9: Substantial layoffs at Majesco Europe

Substantial layoffs at Majesco Europe: Redundancies come in wake of Boston studio closure

January 9: GameStop holiday sales disappoint as preowned falters

GameStop holiday sales disappoint as preowned falters:
Video game retailer GameStop saw strong digital and mobile growth over the holiday period, but it wasn't enough to counter the notable decline in retail sales. ...

January 9: 2013: The year of the microconsole?

2013: The year of the microconsole?:
At a time when it seemed like the console industry was heading toward terminal boredom, things have suddenly started to get a whole lot more interesting. Designer Tadhg Kelly examines the microconsole boom. ...

January 9: Ad network Chartboost draws investor confidence with $19M funding round

Ad network Chartboost draws investor confidence with $19M funding round:
Mobile ad company Chartboost has drawn a bit $19 million investment to continue its rapid growth for its free cross-promotional network, which aims to be a simple plug-and-play solution for developers. ...

January 9: Opinion: What CES 2013 says about the state of the game industry

Opinion: What CES 2013 says about the state of the game industry:
Game Developer magazine editor Patrick Miller argues how the influx of game-related announcements at this year's CES hints at a tumultuous -- yet exciting -- 2013. ...

January 9: GarageGames adapts to hobbyist explosion with new tool

GarageGames adapts to hobbyist explosion with new tool:
How can tools makers leverage an explosion of hobbyists making games, and lower the barrier to entry in a way that benefits their own broader codebase? With 3 Step Studio, GarageGames has an idea. ...

January 9: Eve and Dust servers will merge tomorrow

Eve and Dust servers will merge tomorrow:
It's been a long time coming, but Icelandic developer CCP Games is ready to plug its free-to-play multiplayer shooter Dust 514 into its ten year old, behemoth MMORPG Eve Online. ...

January 9: My New Favorite Endless Runner is Also an Endless Gunner

My New Favorite Endless Runner is Also an Endless Gunner:

You know what Temple Run is missing? Kids with guns. More »

January 9: Razer Prepares to Unleash the World's First PC Gaming Tablet

Razer Prepares to Unleash the World's First PC Gaming Tablet:

At last year's Consumer Electronics Show, gaming peripheral maker Razer debuted Project Fiona, a PC gaming tablet concept with a pair of control sticks affixed to the side. It looked ridiculous, but there was promise there. That promise is realized this year in the Razer Edge, a full-featured, crowd-sourced gaming PC with the form factor of a tablet, shipping soon and starting at under $1,000. You won't believe what they've packed inside this thing. More »

January 9: Kickstarter Backers Pledged $83,144,565 To Games In 2012

Kickstarter Backers Pledged $83,144,565 To Games In 2012:

Ready for some math? 1,378,143 Kickstarter users pledged $83,144,565 to game projects in 2012. There were 2,796 game Kickstarters launched. Of those, 911 were successful. More »

January 9: Atlas Raider Rolls the Dice on Social Board Gaming

Atlas Raider Rolls the Dice on Social Board Gaming:

I miss dice. I miss the days when "social gaming" meant going somewhere and playing a game with people and dice, be it Talisman, Dungeon or just plain old Monopoly. Social game developer CrayonPixel looks to recapture the magic of dice-based board games with Atlas Raider, a new type of board game for the digi-magical age. More »

January 9: It's Official: Gabe Newell Shares Details About Valve's Steam Box

It's Official: Gabe Newell Shares Details About Valve's Steam Box:

With the first of many "Steam Box" computers making its debut at CES, Valve boss Gabe Newell has really opened up to The Verge about his company's hardware plans, revealing that the range of gaming PCs might be even more ambitious than we would have imagined. More »

January 9: Sony And Microsoft Should Be Worried About The Steam Box. Very Worried.

Sony And Microsoft Should Be Worried About The Steam Box. Very Worried.:

The future of home gaming. The next generation. For years now, the anticipation and excitement over what's to come has been dominated by speculation over what would come next from Microsoft and Sony. More »

January 9: There Will Be Baseball on the Xbox 360; Major League Baseball 2K13 Returns

There Will Be Baseball on the Xbox 360; Major League Baseball 2K13 Returns:

2K Sports surprised everyone with its announcement this morning that MLB 2K13 will release this year on Xbox 360. Pitcher David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays is the cover star. The game will be on shelves March 5. More »

January 9: I Didn't Know I Wanted a Trampoline Game on My iPad Until I Saw This

I Didn't Know I Wanted a Trampoline Game on My iPad Until I Saw This:

"Finally a beautiful, fun, frustratingly rewarding trampoline game for the iOS!" began the email from developer Joel Blanco Berg, at which point I stopped and thought about how the use of finally suggests someone was desperately waiting for a trampoline game to come out. Then I watched the trailer for Bouncy!, and realized that maybe I was and just never knew it. More »

January 9: Tera Goes Free-to-Play, Says It Won’t Be “Some Watered-Down Trial Version”

Tera Goes Free-to-Play, Says It Won’t Be “Some Watered-Down Trial Version”:

Guess it was only a matter of time, huh, Tera? En Masse Entertainment's online fantasy game joins Star Wars: The Old Republic and DC Universe Online on the roster of big-deal MMO titles that are ditching subscriptions. Starting in February, subscriptions will no longer be required to play Tera. More »

January 9: Because You Subconsciously Demanded It, the Spiritual Successor to Shaq Fu

Because You Subconsciously Demanded It, the Spiritual Successor to Shaq Fu:

In a post-apocalyptic future a mutation has created a race of sentient zombies that have enslaved mankind. The planet's only hope lies in a warrior of legend known as the Justice Bringer — basketball legend and Kazaam star Shaquille O'Neal. More »

January 9: Game Changer or Needless Gadget? An In-Depth Analysis of Project Shield.

Game Changer or Needless Gadget? An In-Depth Analysis of Project Shield.:

So Nvidia has a new gaming handheld on the way, powered by its latest mobile chip and capable of playing Android games and streaming PC games directly from your computer. More »

January 9: Here We Go: Valve-Backed PC Hardware Will Be Shown Off This Week [Update]

Here We Go: Valve-Backed PC Hardware Will Be Shown Off This Week [Update]:

Let the Steam Box speculation begin. Valve is investing in computer hardware, and they're showing it off this week. More »

January 9: Project Shield's First Killer App Could Be This Tegra 4 Version of Hawken

Project Shield's First Killer App Could Be This Tegra 4 Version of Hawken:

When Adhesive Games' creative director and co-founder Khang Le took the stage during last night's Nvidia press conference to play the free-to-play mech combat game Hawken on Nvidia's Project Shield handheld, I was confused. This was not the PC game. What the hell was that? Turns out Nvidia ran out of time to mention that Adhesive has spent the past couple of weeks building a Tegra 4-exclusive version of the game. More »

January 9: American McGee Defends His Kickstarter Game, Says It's '100% Finished'

American McGee Defends His Kickstarter Game, Says It's '100% Finished':

Last week, I wrote about Akaneiro, a game designed by American McGee (Alice) and announced back in 2011. McGee and his team went to Kickstarter to ask for $200,000 "to finish what [they've] started." More »