Frictionless Insight

Ubisoft announced selected financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. For the year, Ubisoft reported a profit of €37.3 million (around $47 million) compared to a loss in the previous year of €52.1 million. Ubisoft credited its solid financial year to core games such as Assassin's Creed: Revelations and casual games such as Just Dance.

Today's addition to Xbox Live Arcade is Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode II. It can be downloaded to the Xbox 360 for 1,200 points ($15). This episode has Metal Sonic returning to race across four new zones.

Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Developer: CD Projekt RED

Platforms: Xbox 360 and PC
Reviewed on Xbox 360

Geralt of Rivia is a witcher. That makes him both a monster hunter by trade and a monster himself, mutated to battle the horrors that infest the world. Caught with the corpse of a king, Geralt is accused of regicide, and flees to clear his name, becoming embroiled in the brutal chaos of the region. Based on the books by Andrzej Sapkowski and sequel to The Witcher, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings was released nearly a year ago on the PC. Now, The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings: Enhanced Edition brings the game to the Xbox 360, polishing the experience and adding all of the previously released downloadable content.

THQ announced its financial results for its fiscal fourth quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. THQ is in the midst of restructuring, and expected a serious loss despite strong sales of Saints Row: The Third. That said, THQ lost a truly spectacular amount of money, and is only beginning its turnaround effort. Read on for more details...

Sony has released a new batch of downloadable games through the PlayStation Store, including several re-releases of retail games, an audio-visual experience and a bizarre boulder attack game. For the full list and more details, read on...

According to WPRI (a Providence, Rhode Island television station) 38 Studios (the company founded by Curt Schilling that released Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning) is in trouble. Reportedly, state leaders are meeting with the leadership of 38 Studios as well as the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation that made a $75 million, taxpayer-backed loan to 38 Studios (from which 38 Studios has so far received $50 in payments). Presumably, 38 Studios is in serious financial trouble and Rhode Island officials are working with the company to ensure it continues operating. 38 Studios currently employs 288 workers in Providence and 91 in Baltimore (at Big Huge Games).

Rockstar Games, the premier label of Take-Two Interactive, has released Max Payne 3 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 to stores in North America. Max Payne has come a long way in the last decade, offering another noir-(ish) single-player campaign along with multiplayer competition, combining cover-based shooting with Max Payne's signature bullet-time action. The game takes place several years after the previous games with Payne (addicted to painkillers) protecting a Brazilian mogul and his wife.

Activision Publishing, part of Activision Blizzard, has released Battleship for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, DS, and 3DS to stores in North America. The game is based on the film that will reach theaters later this week, in turn based on the classic Hasbro board game. According to Activision, "The game takes a hybrid approach combining military strategy and fast-paced first-person action gaming as players take control of a powerful naval fleet and experience the cinematic action of war at sea." Here at FI, we plan to wait for the board game (based on the Activision game, based on the film, based on an older board game).

Rising Star Games has released Akai Katana for the Xbox 360 to stores in North America. Developed by Cave Interactive, the game is a side-scrolling shoot 'em up (sorry, we still have trouble leaving "shmup" be, as if it's actually a word) set in an alternate version of Japan's Taisho period.

Atlus has released Game of Thrones for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 to stores in North America. A version is also available for the PC as a download. Based on George R. R. Martin's series A Song of Ice and Fire (that is currently also the source material for an HBO series), the game gives players another venue to explore the world of Martin's books. Concerning the story, Atlus quotes Martin as saying "I'm largely happy with it."

Blizzard, part of Activision Blizzard, has launched Diablo III for the PC and Mac. Available both in stores and as a download directly from Battle.net, the game can now be acquired everywhere except for Latin America and Russia, where the game will release on June 7. It's been more than a decade since the release of Diablo II (and its expansion Diablo II: Lord of Destruction). Now players have a new (and much prettier) opportunity to save Sanctuary from the forces of the Burning Hells. While the game is surely a massive upgrade over previous installments, the most remarkable feature is the real-money auction house that makes it easier for players to exchange items (and easier for Blizzard to take a cut of those transactions). Diablo III was massively pre-ordered, and while things appear to be settling down, those who attempted to log on in the middle of the night overcrowded the servers and experienced occasional bugs. That will probably continue as the hordes of enthusiastic gamers log on for the first time, but taper off soon.

Publisher: Paradox Interactive
Developer: Ino-Co Plus

Platform: PC
Reviewed on PC

Windows System Requirements: Dual Core CPU, 2 GB RAM, DirectX 9.0c, GeForce GT240 512 MB video card (or comparable), 4 GB HD space, Windows Vista or more recent operating system

After the Great King sought the Crown of Ardania in Majesty 2: Monster Kingdom, Ardania fell upon hard times. The King disappeared, and nearly a century of civil war left only the Council of Great Mages in a position to maintain order. Eventually, the gods decided that the Council should determine the next worthy ruler. Sadly, the Great Mages could hardly cooperate, let alone agree amongst themselves on a course of action. Defying the will of even the gods, the Great Mages decided to determine Ardania's ruler through a test of might. Only by exploring and conquering Ardania can one mage rule and be dubbed Warlock, Master of the Arcane.

Square Enix announced the financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. Square Enix reported a profit (unlike last year) thanks to the success of certain console titles. Read on for more details...

Atari announced selected preliminary financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. Atari lost less money this year, and plans on closing one of its development studios. Read on for more details...

Street Fighter X Tekken was released for consoles in March, and can now be downloaded to the PC through major portals. This latest fighting game from Capcom features 38 characters from both the Street Fighter and Tekken franchises and includes a new "Scramble Mode" that has four players battling at once.

Spiderweb Software has released its games Avernum X, Avernum 5, and Avernum 6 as downloads through Valve's Steam service. All three titles are role-playing games that have been available for years, but are now easily accessible through Steam. Each game (in old-school, isometric style) offers around 40 hours of play.

Sony announced its financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. Sony Reported a far more brutal loss than last year, but total game-related hardware and software sales appear to have fallen only slightly. Read on for more details...

THQ has launched Nexuiz for the PC. Previously released through Xbox Live Arcade, this is a CryEngine 3-powered arena shooter that has the Kavussari and Forsellians resolving conflicts through broadcast arena combat. The game can be downloaded through Valve's Steam service.

Nintendo announced that, effective May 20, the price of the DSi will be reduced to $100, and the price of the DSi XL will be reduced to $130. The price reductions are designed to move more units (of Nintendo's last-generation handhelds) for the summer season, when Nintendo hopes more travel means more portable gaming.

Tecmo Koei announced certain financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. The company reported net income for the year of ¥4.640 billion (around $58 million) compared to net income of ¥2.741 billion in the previous year. Game software was still the greatest contributor to operating income, with Tecmo Koei reporting particularly strong sales of Ninja Gaiden 3.

Namco Bandai announced its financial results for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2012. For the year, Dark Souls was the company's best-selling game, with networked content helping to drive the improved results. Read on for more details...

Activision Blizzard announced its financial results for its first fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2012. The company reported a significant profit, but a profit symptomatic of a serious underlying problem. Read on for more details...

CCP Games has launched a pod (a small replica of a basic EVE Online ship) into space, containing the names of all EVE Online players. Dubbed "Skyward Sphere," the pod should have reached an altitude of 100,000 feet thanks to a weather balloon, before it returned and was retrieved by the Icelandic Coast Guard. Video feeds from the pod's journey should be available soon through this page. Rumors abound that the project ran into difficulties when thousands of EVE Online players began spamming trade requests in and around Iceland, causing untenable lag and creating collision detection problems for the pod and its balloon.

Bethesda Softworks and id Software (both part of ZeniMax Media) have re-released Wolfenstein 3D. The game is 20 years old today, meaning that the cutting-edge first-person shooter is now playable for free in your browser.

The big day is here. Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition can be downloaded to the Xbox 360 for 1,600 points ($20). Frankly, we find the excitement over this one a little puzzling. We suppose there's a chance that there are plenty of people who want to play Minecraft but don't have a PC and have an Xbox 360. Really, though, we're worried everyone is just going to purchase another copy so they can play Minecraft and increase their Gamerscore. Of course, if you haven't heard of the game, you mine things... and then craft other things.

Sony has once again updated the PlayStation Store with more downloadable games. The noteworthy addition this week is Datura, but there are also some digital re-releases of games and a new PSP mini. Read on for the full list and more details...

Paradox Interactive has released Warlock: Master of the Arcane as a download for the PC. This 4X-style strategy game has players battling over the world of the Majesty games as a great mage bent on world domination.

Sony has released Starhawk for the PlayStation 3 to stores in North America. Developed by LightBox Interactive, Starhawk is a multiplayer online shooter that also allows players to construct offensive and defensive structures (that can spawn vehicles). Set in the distant future, the game casts players as human colonists or mutated outcasts, competing in harsh environments to control sources of Rift Energy.

Her Interactive has released Nancy Drew: Tomb of the Lost Queen for the PC and Mac. Available in some stores or as a download, this latest adventure game based on the teen sleuth (who has remained a teen since the 1930s) has Nancy Drew investigating a series of suspicious accidents amongst a university dig team investigating ancient Egyptian remains.

Bloomberg is one of many companies covering the recent rout in many Japanese gaming stocks. Japan's Consumer Affairs Agency is considering whether "Complete Gacha" violates Japanese law. Complete Gacha is a system in which players can pay a fee for individual in-game items (usually randomly acquired) that in certain combinations can be redeemed for a valuable in-game item. The Consumer Affairs Agency is concerned that the system is misleading and may lead to "unjustifiable premiums" (users shelling out far too much cash). Gree's stock valuation dropped 23% and DeNA dropped 20% (its daily limit). Other companies affected include Konami, Namco Bandai, and Capcom. If judged illegal, this will result in dramatically reduced income (and possibly a more comfortable ethical position) for several Japanese companies with social gaming operations.