While 
the video game industry was optimistic going into E3, the investment community was a bit more skeptical.
Certainly, the introduction of new consoles would give shares of the sector a boost, but would it be enough to bring back the glory days? Analysts were uncertain. But as E3 draws to a close, some of those industry observers have become more optimistic about the next 12 months and beyond.
Kickstarter 
has leveled the playing field for artists in need of funding. But the influx of pros like Zach Braff has many wondering how crowdfunding will be transformed by showbiz (and vice versa).
Over the past four years, Kickstarter has earned a reputation as the place where creators can make their dreams come true by tapping funding outside of traditional industry sources.
The 
unveiling of the next game in Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed franchise didn’t exactly go as planned. Early leaks of the game’s poster and nautical plot hook — along with some earnest hand wringing by gaming media outlets — lessened the impact of the reveal, but that doesn’t mean the game is any less intriguing.
Ubisoft has now formally pulled back the curtain on Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, due out November 1. The new game takes the popular franchise in a different direction, this time turning gamers into pirate assassins rampaging on the high seas. While there will be plenty of dry dock skullduggery to perform, developers say roughly 40 percent of the game will be spent sailing the ocean blue.
Ubisoft 
is opening up its closed gate community to other publishers. Effective immediately, Uplay, the company’s digital distribution service, will begin selling games from competing publishers – including Electronic Arts and Warner Bros.
The cooperative deal, which will also see Ubisoft games appear on EA’s Origin distribution service, is meant to broaden the avenues for players to find games and expand points of sale for game makers.
The 
videogame industry takes its franchises even more seriously than Hollywood.
New games — or at least digitally downloadable content — are expected every year by a voracious audience, with billions in grosses potentially at stake. One misstep can turn a popular game’s most ardent evangelists into its loudest critics.
The 
tragic school shooting in Newtown, CT has once again revived the debate about the impact of violent video games in the media. Senators are calling for hearings. Groups like the NRA are pointing a finger of blame at the industry. And parents are confused and scared.
Aside from a couple of statements from the Entertainment Software Association and Entertainment Consumers Association, the industry has kept its mouth shut about the shooting — and it’s likely to do so for some time. There is, after all, no upside in walking into the fray.
But December wasn’t the first time the issue of video game violence came up. At E3 in June, show goers debated whether the level of violence in demos was over the top. I had a chance to discuss the issue with several CEOs of major publishers.
The 
shift to the American Revolution has been a good one for the Assassin’s Creed franchise.
The latest game in the series, which features a new setting and a new Native American protagonist, has sold more than 7 million copies in its first month on shelves, Ubisoft announced on Wednesday.
Been 
sitting on the edge of your nest waiting for that big screen adaptation of Angry Birds? You might want to get comfortable.
The good news is that Rovio has finally announced when the feature film based on its flagship franchise will be released. The bad news? It’s not going to be ready until 2016.
Ubisoft 
may first and foremost be a video game studio, but as the industry continues to shift, it’s looking to expand its footprint.
The biggest shift these days is the publisher’s growing interest in the world of cinema. After seeing Hollywood fumble one of its valuable franchises with Prince of Persia, Ubisoft has started to take things into its own hands, overseeing production on films tied to the Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell franchises.
And Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot says the company doesn’t plan to cede control this time around.
Among 
third-party publishers, you aren’t likely to find a bigger Wii U booster than Ubisoft chairman and CEO Yves Guillemot.
That’s hardly surprising, given his company’s big bet on the system (it has 10 games in the Wii U’s “launch window,” including six day one titles). But even Guillemot has some things he’d like to see Nintendo doing differently.
Specifically: He’s not a big fan of the console’s price.
Chris Morris: Journalist 