Joystiq

Metro: Last Light gets season pass, first DLC in June

David Hinkle — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:00:00 EST

Metro: Last Light developer 4A Games is planning to release four different content packs throughout the summer, all bundled together today in a season pass available on Xbox Live, PSN and Steam for 1200 MS Points ($15).

The Faction and Chronicle packs are the first listed, each aimed at continuing the single-player story of Metro: Last Light. Faction is due first, in June. The Tower pack will be aimed at Metro veterans, offering "a unique solo challenge." Finally, the Developer pack aims to offer some additional tools aiding in exploration. All season pass purchases will also unlock an exclusive semi-automatic shotgun rifle, while each piece of DLC will be available for individual purchase.

Metro: Last Light launched on May 14, with our review placing it in the company of another story-driven shooter, Half-Life. The game was originally set to be published by THQ, but after the studio's fall Deep Silver came in and acquired the game.

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Metro: Last Light gets season pass, first DLC in June originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 22 May 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Metro: Last Light shines in this week's UK charts

Sinan Kubba — Mon, 20 May 2013 07:00:00 EST

It's another familiar week of UK cha-... oh wait, it isn't.

After Dead Island: Riptide sliced through its competition for three weeks, this time it's dethroned by another follow-up in the form of Metro: Last Light. By debuting in top spot, it does what Metro 2033 failed to do when it placed fifth in 2010.

Chart-Track says Metro 2033 sold stronger than Last Light in its launch week. Back then, Metro 2033 was fighting March megatons like Final Fantasy 13, God of War 3, and Battlefield Bad Company 2. In contrast, May 2013 has been dead quiet - emphasis on dead.

Having said that, this week sees another new release in the top ten via Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Gates to Infinity. The spinoff charts fourth this week. We expect the next 3DS Poke-game to do slightly better.

In other movers and shakers, Last Light only nudged Riptide into second place, making this week a 1-2 for Deep Silver and Koch Media. Tomb Raider drops out of the top five for the first time in its 11th week, slipping down to sixth. Meanwhile, Injustice: Gods Among Us and The Walking Dead (packaged retail edition) shuffle into eighth and seventh.

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Metro: Last Light shines in this week's UK charts originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 20 May 2013 07:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Deep Silver confirms acquisition of Saints Row, Metro and Volition

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 17:30:00 EST

Koch Media/Deep Silver officially announced today it has secured the intellectual property rights for two THQ franchises: Saints Row and Metro. It has also obtained Volition, the Chicago-based development studio responsible for Saints Row.

"These franchises hold a special place in the hearts and minds of anyone who loves exceptional video games," said Deep Silver COO Geoff Mulligan. "We're thrilled to usher in a new era for these franchises and are proud to welcome the visionaries and talented forces at Volition on board."

Although Deep Silver doesn't mention the cost of these acquisitions, the Saints Row IP and Volition Studio sold for $22.3 million, according to documents obtained by Joystiq, while the rights to Metro 2033 and upcoming sequel Metro: Last Light sold for $5.9 million. Deep Silver will elaborate upon future plans for each franchise in the coming months.

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Deep Silver confirms acquisition of Saints Row, Metro and Volition originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 23 Jan 2013 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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THQ bid winners, prices and runners-up

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 15:50:00 EST

Joystiq has obtained details on the winning auction bids for the various THQ intellectual properties and licenses made available during the company's bankruptcy auction. We've listed the winning bids and runners up below.

To clarify, we've noted whether the asset is a studio, intellectual property (IP) or license.

Relic (studio) and Company of Heroes (IP)
Winning bid: $26.6 million - Sega Corporation
Backup bidder: $26.3 million - Zenimax Media

THQ Montreal (studio), with 1666 (IP) and Underdog (IP)
Winning bid: $2.5 million - Ubisoft
Backup bidder: N/A

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THQ bid winners, prices and runners-up originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 23 Jan 2013 15:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everything's alright about 'Andrew Lloyd Webber: Sing & Dance' game for Wii

Alexander Sliwinski — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 23:45:00 EST

Come this fall, we're sure some warm, unspoken secrets will be revealed after playing Andrew Lloyd Webber Musical: Sing & Dance. The Wii game by Tubby Games will include 32 tracks across 13 musicals from the musical master's half-century career.

The game includes three modes, allowing players to dance, sing or enter the career mode, which will allow them to perform in the lead. There's also a multiplayer mode with support for up to four people.

The game will be out in the UK on September 14, with no mention of an overseas release. Don't cry, Argentina ... or any other country for that matter.

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Everything's alright about 'Andrew Lloyd Webber: Sing & Dance' game for Wii originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 31 Jul 2012 23:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sega shuttering several offices across Europe and Australia

Ben Gilbert — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 11:00:00 EST

Sega's European arm is closing offices in four European regions and Australia, the company announced this morning. The move is part of Sega's continued "restructuring" toward a smaller company - a result of "extraordinary" losses incurred over the past few years. Sega offices in France, Spain, Benelux, Germany, and Australia are being closed.

Taking up distribution responsibilities in lieu of Sega is Koch Media, parent company of Dead Island publisher Deep Silver, who will handle things in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France, and Spain. Handling Benelux and Australia are Level03 Distribution and 5 Star Games, while Sega's London office will remain open in an oversight capacity.

Sega Europe COO Jurgen Post reconfirmed Sega's commitment to its core IPs in the announcement. "SEGA is entering a new and exciting phase that will position the company as a content led organisation maximising sales with strong and balanced IP such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Total War, Football Manager and the Aliens franchise." He also noted Sega's "confident that this will lead to a successful future."

It's at this time unclear how many Sega employees were let go in today's office closures, but we've reached out to the company for more info.

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Sega shuttering several offices across Europe and Australia originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 28 Jun 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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THQ shuts down publishing in Italy and Spain [Update]

Jessica Conditt — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 17:30:00 EST

THQ has closed its offices in Italy and Spain and hired an outside distributor, Koch Media, to ship its games throughout those regions instead. The closures follow a "strategic review" of THQ's operations in Italy and Spain, according to Annie Sullivan, THQ's managing director of European market development.

"We were looking for a distribution partner who has the most effective networks locally to market THQ's products," Sullivan said. "I'm excited for the opportunities that THQ's partnership with Koch Media represents and am looking forward to working together on successful launches of our forthcoming products."

We have contacted THQ for more information on the European closures.

Update: THQ has responded, noting that these are not "new" actions, but are new distributor agreements in Spain and Italy: "As part of the previously announced restructuring of its global publishing business, THQ made changes to its publishing operations in Europe. As a result of those changes, the company will now utilize Koch Media as its publishing distributor in Spain. In Italy, the company continues to utilize a distribution company, and a new agreement is in place with Koch Media for that region.

"These are not new actions, just updates on previous decisions and new agreements with specific territory distribution partners."

THQ shuts down publishing in Italy and Spain [Update] originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Ubisoft, Atari, many other publishers requesting payment from German pirates

Ben Gilbert — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 09:30:00 EST

Someone in Germany -- perhaps even some people -- illegally pirated a copy of Prison Break: The Conspiracy. Hard to believe as it may be, it appears to be the case according to TorrentFreak, who delved into German public records looking for game publishers who have employed German law to track down (and demand money from) people who allegedly pirated various games. In Germany, Koch Media publishes the Prison Break game, and has been demanding settlements of "several hundred Euros" from offending IP addresses.

The records indicate that several major publishers, either directly or through subsidiaries/secondary parties, have been sending out letters to German citizens requesting varying levels of payment in return for not being sued. Where things get murky, however, is how the publishers are seeking out the accused pirates, using not always reliable "IP address-only evidence" -- easily circumvented with proxy domains and such. You know, hacker stuff.

TorrentFreak's report indicates that a variety of publishers and distributors are involved, including (but not limited to): Atari, Koch Media (representing Techland's Dead Island and Prison Break, and Eidos/Square Enix's Deus Ex: Human Revolution as well as Dungeon Siege 3 and various Final Fantasy titles), Daedalic Entertainment (representing LucasArts), Codemasters, BitComposer, Ubisoft, Kalypso Media, dtp entertainment, and Aerosoft. It is currently unclear how many settlement notices have been sent out by each company, or if any will continue doing so after these actions have been brought to light.

Witcher 2 developer CD Projekt Red was recently pursuing similar cases in Germany until it announced the end of the practice last week.

Report: Ubisoft, Atari, many other publishers requesting payment from German pirates originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 16 Jan 2012 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Playlogic asks for mercy from court against creditors

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Weird But True, Opinions, New In Pop Culture

Dutch publisher Playlogic (Fairytale Fights, Obscure: The Aftermath) has notified the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it has entered into "surseance van betaling," which is closely equivalent to the States' Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company claims in the filing that "Tough market conditions, late payments by large customers and the delays in projects have forced the company to seek protection under the Dutch bankruptcy laws."

According to GI.biz, Playlogic is suing distribution partner Koch Media for €1.7 million ($2.2M) in unpaid bills as it continues hemorrhaging money, after recording a $20 million loss in its previous fiscal year. For a company that stated just yesterday that it wasn't bankrupt, it's amazing what a difference a day makes.

Playlogic asks for mercy from court against creditors originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 28 Jul 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cursed Mountain dev Deep Silver Vienna shuttered

Ben Gilbert — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 17:30:00 EST

As confirmed by parent company Koch Media to Develop, Cursed Mountain developer Deep Silver Vienna has apparently been closed. Citing "the overall economic situation" and noting "this decision is not easy for us," the 20-person staff was recently cut and told they would receive pay through the end of March. Develop posits that the studio's other game -- Ride to Hell -- will likely remain unaffected by the shutdown, as UK dev house Eutechnyx is handling development and Koch Media's Munich offices will oversee the game's management.

Deep Silver Vienna was formed in the wake of Rockstar Vienna's closing back in 2006, and originally called itself Games That Matter. Ex-Rockstar Vienna heads Hannes Seifert and Niki Laber launched the studio, and it is said that Siefert has moved on to a position at Square Enix Europe as a creative director. As with every case like this, we'd like to wish those affected the best of luck.

Cursed Mountain dev Deep Silver Vienna shuttered originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 31 Jan 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Carcassone laying down tiles on the DS

David Hinkle — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:00:00 EST

Everyone's favorite German board game (no, not that one), Carcassonne, is coming to the DS, courtesy of Koch Media. The news comes via Go Nintendo, with the press release mentioning the DS title will feature the original game plus three new territories: the Asian, Arabic, and Nordic worlds. The game will also include the River expansion set, which comes standard with the newer versions of the Carcassonne board game. You can expect three different modes of play, including a single-player, story-driven mode, a quick play mode for, uh, quick play, and a multiplayer mode that will support game sharing and local wireless multiplayer.

Our only beef is that the size of the game grid might not scale down to the DS screen too well, and it might be hard to see everything going on. But, hey, even if that's the case, you won't need to clean up a messy board game, and isn't that the important thing here?

[image credit]

Carcassone laying down tiles on the DS originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wii now widely available to UK retailers

JC Fletcher — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:15:00 EST

Koch Media, Nintendo's UK distribution partner, told Nindie.com ("A Community for the Independent Retailers of Nintendo!") that Wii consoles are freely available to retailers for the first time since the system's launch. Previously, Wiis were shipped to stores on an "allocation" basis -- the number of systems shipped depended on factors like store size and sale of other Nintendo products.

However, allocation still plays into Wii orders in a way. Koch's Craig McNicol told MCV, "We also urge customers to remember that Wii console purchases count towards the allocation of DSi, Wii Fit and forthcoming new releases."

If you haven't bought a Wii yet and you're planning to, it might be a good time. Though Nintendo has increased the cost of the system to retailers, it's currently still possible for stores to get them at the original cost. "We haven't put our prices up yet as we're still able to access stock sourced at the original value," Chips' Don McCabe said. "However, this supply is drying up, so we'll have to see what happens with the extra cost."

The biggest takeaway for us? There's a community for independent retailers of Nintendo.

Wii now widely available to UK retailers originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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See Europe at War in new Military History Commander game

Andrew Yoon — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:21:00 EST

PSP and DS will soon be home to a brand new turn-based strategy game from Koch Media. Military History Commander - Europe at War is the first in a "new series of games." Set in a World War II, players can choose to play as either the Axis or the Allied forces. From the looks of things, this will be a rather standard grid-based strategy affair, with visuals akin to the Advance Wars series of games.

Six scenarios are planned for the handhelds, including Operation Barbarossa and D-Day. Players will also be able to create 50 different inventions and recruit famous historical commanders throughout the game. The in-game artwork is done by Osprey Publishing.

For now, the game has been announced for release in Europe only. We'll have to wait and see if it sees the light of day in the States as well.

See Europe at War in new Military History Commander game originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 14:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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