Industry print publication Game Developer has released its 2007 list of Top 20 Publishers in video games, and the top slot has changed for the first time in the history of the annual feature, with third-party industry heavyweight Electronic Arts ceding the #1 crown to first-party manufacturer Nintendo. The title is the latest in a seemingly unending string of good news for the Kyoto-based hardware giant, which recently saw its stock hit a record high.

EA moved down to #2, with Activision coming in at #3, Ubisoft moving up to #4, and THQ rounding out the top five. Take-Two Interactive and Sega of America took the next two slots. As far as the other first-party publishers, Sony Computer Entertainment came in at #8, one slot above Microsoft Game Studios. Fans of niche Japanese gaming will be pleased to know that Atlus has joined the Top 20 for the first time at #18, while ailing Atari has dropped off.

Game Developer publisher CMP Game Group compiled its list by considering detailed responses from over 300 members of the game publishing community, as well as sales and review data, release portfolios, and employee pay.

A full list of the Top 20 Publishers follows. The full 100-page report is available for purchase from Game Developer Research, with a summary in the October 2007 issue of Game Developer. ... Read more

Super Computer International is now a part of game giant Electronic Arts, the ever-growing publisher announced today. The Atlanta-based SCI, not to be confused with Eidos parent company SCi--another speculated EA acquisition target--will be a part of EA's Online Technology Group.

"SCI's development expertise is uniquely suited to our online technology needs," said EA VP Nanea Reeves in the announcement. "The team's technical leadership and creative approach is a great fit, and we're thrilled to have them join EA."

EA will acquire all of the company's technology assets and the development team members will become EA employees. As such, SCI CEO Jesper Jensen will remain head of the team, directly under EA's Reeves.

SCI created PlayLinc, a multiplayer gaming messaging platform that has been customized for new releases from publishers including EA and Ubisoft. It's a safe bet EA will integrate SCI's technology into its PC multiplayer gaming client offerings, so a revamp in this area may arrive in the near future.

New York-based telecom provider Verizon actually acquired an equity stake in SCI last year, and used the company's PlayLinc technology in its now defunct Verizon Games Network initiative.

Partially confirming persistent rumors originating this week, Microsoft has announced that Bungie Studios, once the independent developer of the Marathon and Myth franchises and currently a wholly-owned Halo-developing first-party Microsoft subsidiary, will make moves towards corporate independence. The company was founded as a heavily Mac-oriented developer in 1991 and acquired by Microsoft in 2000.

Both parties are said to be "focused on the continued success of the 'Halo' franchise." Microsoft stated it will retain both a minority equity interest in the studio as well as its control of the Halo franchise and its publishing rights to further Bungie products. Unlike when the company was acquired and moved from its Chicago home to Kirkland, Washington, this shift will not result in another change of location.

Though Microsoft will continue publishing Bungie's titles, the studio will retain ownership of any new intellectual properties it creates. Both IP ownership and the ability to develop non-Halo titles were rumored to be major factors behind the split.

The situation is reminiscent of Sony Computer Entertainment's relationship with Ratchet & Clank developer Insomniac Games. Though the studio is ... Read more

MMO publisher and developer NCsoft has officially unveiled Carbine Studios, the company's latest addition to its stable of development teams. Initially founded in 2005 and located in Aliso Viejo, CA, Carbine is working on an unnanounced MMO it vows will "break new ground in massively multiplayer gaming."

In addition to publishing Cryptic Studios' super-powered PC MMO City of Heroes, NCsoft is known in the MMO community for the Guild Wars series developed by its ArenaNet subsidiary and the internally developed Lineage franchise, which has proven to be a massive success in Korea. It recently partnered with Sony to bring titles to PlayStation 3 and PSP.

Among the new studio's staff are a number of industry veterans, with World of Warcraft lead developer and Carbine co-founder Kevin Beardlsee serving as the company's vice president of design.

Other notable talent at the studio include 16 other ex-Blizzard employees, Tim Cain--co-founder of Vampire: The Masquerade--Bloodlines (PC) developer Troika Games and former producer, lead programmer, and designer on Black Isle's cult classic PC RPG Fallout--and Jeffery Gaffney, who co-founded ... Read more

Without any official denial or confirmation from Bungie or Microsoft, rumors continue to swirl that the studio behind Halo will, in some form, depart from Microsoft due to Microsoft's want of more Halo, lackluster profit sharing, and other differences.

As previously noted, Microsoft owns Bungie, so it is impossible that the developer would be able to split from Microsoft without Microsoft's desire to sell it. The latest round of industry gossip addresses this issue.

Shareholder Buyback?
According to a source quoted by Game Informer, Bungie shareholders supposedly brokered a deal allowing them to buy the Bungie name back from Microsoft as long as the corporation has "the right of first refusal" on all future Bungie titles.

If true, Bungie would have to pitch new titles to Microsoft before they approached any other publisher. Such a setup would guarantee Microsoft the first pick at potential blockbusters but would also allow the studio more freedom, including the option to develop on other platforms.

However, the notion of Bungie having shareholders struck some the wrong way, especially since Microsoft acquired complete ownership of the studio. For clarification, Shacknews inquired to a Microsoft representative, who responded with "we don't discuss financial terms."

The report also specifies that Microsoft would retain ownership ... Read more

Over at WarCry you can find a Q&A with John Smedley, CEO of Sony Online Entertainment. Smedley comments on the MMO genre, their plans for innovation, going head to head against World of Warcraft with EverQuest 2, working with Warner Brothers and more.

Future US, publisher of special interest magazines such as Pregnancy, has teamed with Sony Computer Entertainment America to produce an officially-branded PlayStation magazine. Rival publisher Ziff Davis ceased its work on the demo disc-packing Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine earlier this year.

Known as PlayStation: The Official Magazine, the Future US-published outing will be helmed by Rob Smith, former editor in chief of the also Future-published PSM--Independent PlayStation Magazine.

The first issue of PTOM, the Holiday 2007 special, will appear in late November, with an initial circulation run of 300,000 copies. In all, there will be 13 issues of the magazine published yearly--presumably 12 monthly issues and a holiday special. There is no word yet if the magazine will come packaged with a demo disc.

With Future US handling Nintendo Power and Official Xbox Magazine, the company, which also owns online gaming site GamesRadar, now maintains a veritable monopoly in the realm of console manufacturer-sanctioned gaming magazines. Parent company Future Publishing likewise holds the rights for the official UK publications of all three manufacturers, and publishes PC Gamer in both the US and UK as well.

The CEO of French holding company Infogrames says it will soon enact a plan to make ailing U.S. subsidiary Atari Inc. profitable again, Reuters reports. The New York-headquartered publisher Atari just recently filed its delayed fiscal year 2007 results, detailing a $69.7 million net loss.

"As I said in June, we are negotiating with the management and the board of Atari Inc. to restore equilibriums," Infogrames CEO Patrick Leleu said at an annual shareholders' meeting. "We are looking after the interests of Infogrames and its shareholders. We are trying to negotiate action plans."

Infogrames is the majority owner of Atari, with 51% stake in the company. The American publisher laid off 20% of its workforce this summer.

Ultima creator and Origin Systems co-founder Richard Garriott (pictured left) expects his next project to take off--literally. The 46-year old game developer, who most recently helmed the development of Destination Games' Tabula Rasa (PC) and often goes by the alias of Lord British, hopes to follow in the footsteps of his astronaut father and embark on a journey to outer space.

By teaming with Space Adventures, the self-described "leading space experiences company," Garriott blasts off in October 2008. The interstellar adventure of his "'commercially active' mission" will take him to the International Space Station, where he will work with his father's company, ExtremoZyme, on protein crystallization experiments. Space Adventures and Garriott are currently looking for other research and commercial partners.

Garriott made headlines earlier this year in a completely unrelated incident, which saw his property in Austin infiltrated by group of nine or more trespassers and robbed of more than $5,000 in alcohol. The robbers, presumably accidentally, left behind a digital camera detailing their exploits.

"I am dedicating my spaceflight to science," pledged Garriott. "I ... Read more

Update: Bizarre has confirmed to Shacknews that it does not own the rights to Project Gotham Racing nor The Club and will not be developing future games in those series.

"There may well be further games in these series, but they won't be developed by Bizarre," community and web lead Ben Ward told Shacknews. "Geometry Wars is still Bizarre's baby, and we will continue to develop further games in the series just like we've always planned. Also, GW:Galaxies (Wii, DS) will still be released by Sierra."

Original Story: Bizarre Creations, developer of the Microsoft-published Project Gotham Racing series and the Geometry Wars franchise, is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision.

The studio most recently finished work on the Microsoft-published Xbox 360 racer Project Gotham Racing 4, which is due out on October 4. Bizarre is also working with Sega on the third-person shooter The Club (PC, PS3, X360) and with Sierra and Kuju Entertainment on Wii and DS iterations of the seminal multi-directional grid-based shooter Geometry Wars. It is unclear how the acquisition will affect future titles in said franchises, though Shacknews has inquired as to the ownership of the various Bizarre-developed IPs.

Following news of the acquisition, the studio announced it has begun development on two new titles-one a racing title, the other ... Read more

The Gearbox Software jobs page has been updated, as the Dallas, TX area developer is looking for more people to join the Borderlands team. Open positions include: concept artist, game programmer, level designer, 3D modeler, and texture artist.

San Diego Superior Court Judge Timothy Walsh handed a Vista, California resident a one-year sentence today on top of $110,000 in fines and restitution for trafficking counterfeit video games. The San Diego CATCH (Computer and Technology Crime High-Tech Response) team arrested Frederick Brown in June of this year on a tip from the Entertainment Software Association.

Brown pleaded guilty in August to two counts of trafficking in counterfeit products, a felony. "Sentences that include jail time send a clear message that violating intellectual property rights is a serious crime with significant consequences and violators will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," said ESA intellectual property official Ric Hirsch in a statement responding to the sentence.

The San Diego CATCH team found hundreds of pirated video games in Brown's home. He's required to serve 90 days of his one-year sentence in jail, with the rest served in work furlough. Five years of probation, a $100,000 fine and $10,000 in restitution to the ESA, and restricted computer use outside of prison round out the sentencing.

Oklahoma District Court Judge Robin Cauthron ruled the 2006 Oklahoma bill equating games with porn unconstitutional yesterday, issuing a permanent injunction against the legislation. The Entertainment Software Association has issued a response to Cauthron's ruling, obviously supporting the pro-game industry decision.

"We need to move past unconstitutional attempts to circumvent Oklahoma citizens’ rights. This bill was clearly unconstitutional and we now need to develop a public/private partnership that meets concerned parents' needs," said ESA president Michael Gallagher in an issued statement. "State officials and policymakers should work together with our industry to educate parents about game ratings and the parental controls available on all new video game consoles."

Cauthron based her ruling on the First Amendment protection of video games as creative expression, and said there was "a complete dearth of legislative findings, scientific studies, or other rationale to support passage of the Act." Introduced by Rep. Fred Morgan (R-Oklahoma) in summer of 2006, the bill was halted from taking effect in November after Cauthron issued a primary injunction against it.

French developer Ubisoft today opened its second development studio in China.

Located in Chengdu, Sichuan and appropriately named Ubisoft Chengdu, the new studio will start out working on internal outsourcing projects and eventually focus on the development of online titles for the broad range of PC, consoles, and handhelds.

Based in Tianfu Software Park, Ubisoft Chengdu has only ten team members at the moment, but plans to employ more than 200 across the coming year. With the company describing Chengdu as "a perfect environment," it expects "long-term growth opportunities based on a talented and highly educated local population."

"The success of our studio in Shanghai, which has been further confirmed with the launch of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 for the PlayStation 3 system, has encouraged us to extend our growth in China," explained Ubisoft executive director Christine Burgess-Quemard.

In the pursuit of higher education, Florida's Ringling College of Art and Design has licensed Crytek's CryENGINE 2 middleware. The initial participant in Crytek's educational licensing program, Ringling is the first academic institution to implement CryENGINE 2 into its curriculum.

"We are thrilled Crytek has chosen Ringling College as its inaugural partner for educational licensing," said Ringling president Dr. Larry Thompson. "We view this CryENGINE 2 agreement as a validation of the exceptional and innovative academic program we have created here and feel privileged to have Crytek as one of our newest business partners."

"The ranks of the Ringling alumni reads like a who's who of the computer graphics world, as do the companies they work for," noted Crytek director Faruk Yerli. "Our own director of animation is an alumnus, which shows you how highly we regard their graduates."

"Now that Ringling will be training their students using our engine ... Read more

Hardware manufacturer Intel will acquire physics software creator Havok for an undisclosed sum. Under the terms of the agreement, Havok will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intel.

In the past, Havok has provided physics solutions for a number of games, ranging from 2K Boston/2K Australia's BioShock (PC, X360) and Evolution Studios' MotorStorm (PS3) to Valve's Half-Life 2 (PC, PS3, X360, Xbox), and movies, such as Andy & Larry Wachowski's The Matrix and Ridley Scott's Kingdom of Heaven.

The company recently released the fifth iteration of its physics software suite, which introduced new features and allowed for greater efficiency across all supported platforms, including PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, and PSP.

"Havok is a proven leader in physics technology for gaming and digital content, and will become a key element of Intel's visual computing and graphics efforts," said Intel VP Renee J. James. "Havok will operate its business as usual, which will allow them to continue developing products that are offered across all platforms in the industry."

NPD gave Shacknews the North American software sales numbers for the month of August today, with the top two spots taken by the Xbox 360 version and PlayStation 2 version of EA Tiburon's Madden NFL 08. This reverses previous year trends, as the PlayStation 2 version of Madden NFL 07 outsold the Xbox 360 version by about 1 million units in 2006.

The 360 Madden stiff-armed its way to 896,600 homes during the game's first month at retail, a considerably higher amount than the 643,600 PS2 versions sold. Using Madden sales as a relative measure of console popularity, it would seem the mainstream move to current-gen consoles has arrived. This shift is seen further by the Xbox 360's 276,000 units shipped during August, beating out the last-gen PS2's 202,000.

Taking third place in software sales was the Xbox 360 version of 2K Boston/2K Australia's underwater shooter BioShock, selling 490,900 units... Read more

Silicon Knights has responded to Epic Games' rebuttal and motion to dismiss the Canadian developer's lawsuit regarding its grievances with the Unreal Engine 3 during the development of Too Human (X360).

Filed by Silicon Knights on September 7, the 29-page document specifically addresses Epic's attempt to get the case thrown out and its claims that the company has nothing to gain if it delivers lacking technology to licensees.

"For Epic to attempt to dispute the merit of those allegations [of the original suit] under the auspices of a motion to dismiss is improper," it reads, according to Next-Gen.biz. "Therefore, Epic’s Motion to dismiss should be denied in its entirety, Epic should be ordered to answer the Complaint, and this case should proceed to discovery and trial.

"The profits Epic assured for itself by having Gears of War as the marquee title for the Xbox 360 dwarf any gain Epic would receive from Silicon Knights purchasing a subsequent licenses for the Engine," it continues. Silicon Knights has accused Epic of holding back Unreal Engine 3 optimizations ... Read more

Universally scorned filmmaker Uwe Boll has acquired the rights for the film adaptation of under-the-radar action-RPG Legend: Hand of God (PC). He's not even waiting to see how the relatively unknown game fares at retail--the title from German studio Master Creating doesn't hit shelves until the first quarter of 2008 in the U.S., although the game retails in Germany on October 12.

With the great success of Boll's previous films intimately tied to his choice of outstanding retail performers like Sega's House of the Dead and Terminal Reality's BloodRayne, it will be interesting to see if the director/producer's gamble pays off.

"I think Legend will be very successful because of its unique blend of high fantasy and dark atmosphere," the announcement attributed to Boll, quoting him from the Vancouver set of his film adaptation for Crytek's jungle-shooter Far Cry (PC). "The world of Legend contains major crossover potential and was already adapted as novel and audio book."

According to the press release, the film will have an approximately... Read more

International gaming competition the World Series of Video Games has been canceled mid-season due to financing difficulties. Games Media Properties, the event's producer, announced the cancellation on the competition's website yesterday.

As a result of the cancellation, the planned competitions in Los Angeles, London, and Sweden will not take place. The last World Series of Video Games event was held in late August in Toronto, Canada.

Games Media Properties plans to shift its efforts to increasing its "online advertising network of websites, which currently reach seven... Read more