Gaming Gaming News

[Shinmaru]

Okay, after a PM or two with my boss, Semjaza, we decided to create a thread dedicated to gaming news and rumors.

A couple things before we go into this, though:

1) Anyone can post in this. Feel free to post any bits of gaming news you want, or to comment on any bit of gaming news that is posted in this thread.

2) However, even though you can post any piece of gaming news you want, I'd rather this thread have only smaller pieces of gaming news. If a piece of gaming news is big enough to have it's own thread, than it should probably have it's own thread. But it's your call.

3) Also, please source your information, in case people want to search it out and confirm it for themselves. It's much easier that way.

4) Even though this is in the Nintendo forum, you can include gaming news about any company, even Microsoft and Sony. It's just easier that way.

Okay, I'll start us off:

Source: Electronic Gaming Monthly, Issue #172, Nov. 2003

- Those looking forward to Perfect Dark may have to wait a bit longer than first intended because it seems that Microsoft wants to wait until Halo 2 comes out before they start to hype Perfect Dark Zero. As many know, Rare is under full ownership of Microsoft, so most decisions about the release of PDZ are totally Microsoft's call.

- The sequel to Knights of the Old Republic 2, while still be way, way off the gaming radar, will reportedly include co-op play.

- Even though EA has remained totally exclusive to Sony when it comes to online games, EA has reportedly agreed to have it's 2005 sports games as a part of XBox Live along with their PS2 counterparts. No word on online GameCube EA games, however.

That's about it for me. I'd post more but I'm running low on time right now and the EGM is the only thing I have with me right now. However, I know of, literally, tons of gaming websites I can go to for information.

More News:

Source:

[url]http://www.gamespot.com/all/news/news_6076016.html[/url]

According to Gamespot, Ubi Soft is filing charges against five former designers (who have worked, among other things, on Splinter Cell) with breach of contract, when they left the company to join EA Canada.

A clause in the contracts limits employees who sign it to work in the North American gaming industry for a period of one year after they leave the company. Though Ubi Soft does have a Montreal studio, they have never enforced this clause before.

Ubi Soft is indeed enforcing this clause, but they have yet to elaborate further on the subject. EA believes that this case will restrict employees from being able to work wherever they choose to.

[Meteora]

[color=666666][size=1][i]I have got a question. Are we aloud to request for people to look up stuff? Like I want toknow when the set date for .Hack??quarintine is. So that I know when to start saving my money or whatever. That will be all for now.[/color][/size][/i]

[Shinmaru]

I've heard tons of conflicting release dates about .hack//QUARANTINE. Some say November, some say late December, and others say early January, so I'm not quite sure on that one. If anyone else would like to hear a specific piece of gaming news, then feel free to request. But if you could something else in there along with it, that'd be nice.

Source: [url]www.allrpg.com[/url]

- The PS2's price has been lowered in Europe from from 169.99 Euros (about $280) to 139.99 Euros (about $230).

- Square-Enix is planning to put together a Front Mission compilation (currently named Front Mission History) to be released for PS2. The expected Japanese release date should be about December.

- And, in more Square-Enix news, Final Fantasy XII, which has long been held in secret, is expected to finally be unveiled in November. This is the official website: [url]http://www.ff12.com/[/url] There's an interesting intro showing some of the backgrounds of the game on the site right now, but nothing really major.

And that's about it for me. More news to come later.

More news:

Source: [url]www.allrpg.com[/url]

- Square Enix has announced that Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest will be available to play on cell phones in Japan. FF will be a port of the Wonderswan version and Dragon Quest will be a port of the Famicom version.

- Square Enix also announced that there will be no FFVII remake due to complications with the PlayStation 2 hardware.

- Hideaki Irie was recently hired as Sega of America's new President and COO. For 20 years, he was the President of AgeTec, Inc. and ASCII.

[Semjaza]

[url]http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/news/news_6076338.html[/url]

[quote]Sony announces that it will unveil its PlayStation 2-based PSX device in Tokyo next week.

Sony has today announced that it will unveil its PSX device at the CEATAC Japan 2003 industry show in Tokyo next Tuesday. The PSX, which was first announced back in May, is a set-top box that not only boasts PS2 hardware but also a 120GB hard drive, built-in Ethernet support, a TV and broadcast satellite tuner, and a DVD recorder.

Sony plans to launch the PSX in Japan before the end of the year, and in North America and Europe sometime in 2004. Exact launch dates and pricing for the machine have yet to be announced.[/quote]

I'm not optimistic about the price, although Sony said they'd be very aggressive with it. I can't imagine average people having a need for this either, but whatever.

[Shinmaru]

Source: [url]http://cube.ign.com/articles/453/453059p1.html?fromint=1[/url]

[quote]Nintendo Takes a Net Loss
For the first time.

October 03, 2003 - Nintendo of Japan today announced results for the fiscal first half and for the first time since the company's inception it suffered a net loss. The publisher of videogames cited a stronger-than-anticipated Japanese currency for the 3 billion yen (or $27 million, US) net loss.
Despite this, Nintendo reiterated its full-year sales forecast of 550 billion yen.

Source: Bloomberg

[/quote]

I wouldn't worry too much about this. I'm sure that plenty of anti-Nintendo zealots will try to use this as an indication that Nintendo's going down the tubes but it really isn't.

[Semjaza]

Yeah, there's a big difference between losing profits thanks to things tied into the government and world economy and just not selling things. Nintendo's problem is the former.

[I, Colossus]

[quote]TOKYO, Oct 7 (Reuters) - Sony Corp said on Tuesday it would begin selling the "PSX," an all-in-one game console and entertainment system, in Japan by the year-end, in a bid to boost its sagging electronics sales.

Sony, the world's largest consumer electronics maker, said the PSX would feature a satellite TV tuner, DVD recorder, hard disk drive (HDD) recorder and PlayStation 2 (PS2) game player.

A version with a 160-gigabyte HDD would sell for 79,800 yen ($719) and be able to record up to 204 hours of television, the company said. It would also sell a 250-gigabyte version for 99,800 yen $899.

Chief Executive Nobuyuki Idei said in May that one of the growth strategies for Sony's electronics business would be to integrate it with the company's profit-making games division.[/quote]

[color=#006699]Although it is just an add on to Semjaza's earlier statement about the PSX, I think it was still worth a post. From what I've heard Sony is seeing how much people will actually pay for a gaming system packed with a load of electronics. So they know exactly [i]what[/i] to price the PS3 at. [/color]

[James]

[color=#707875]Yep, this is the start of it merging together. I don't think it's too unrealistic to expect people to pay this price for it though, considering that it's much more of a high-end multimedia device.

Still, I think it would be ridiculous to position PS3 anywhere near that level. [/color]

[Shinmaru]

Yeah, it would be pretty ridiculous to ask anyone to pay $719 for a gaming system, no matter how much crap is added onto it. *shakes head* When will people remember that gaming systems are, first and foremost, gaming systems?! I think too many people are getting caught up in the craze of adding on too much stuff to their systems. Seriously, does anyone use the PS2 as a DVD Player? Does anyone use the PSX as a CD Player? The only worthy add-on that I've really seen is the hard drive included with XBox, which is pretty practical, in my opinion.

[James]

[color=#707875]Well, originally, PS2 was selling primarily as a DVD player...at least in Japan.

I believe that there is room for a "convergence" machine like PSX. However, I also think it's unlikely that PS2 owners will move to PSX. Sony seems to be trying to attract new consumers into the market with this machine. They also did that with the original PlayStation. So, I don't know...I don't actually see the PSX as an irrelevant product or anything.

But it does make me wonder where PS3 will be positioned. If Sony position it at the level of PSX, they will singlehandedly kill a huge amount of their userbase -- Microsoft would probably be the first in line to pick those consumers up, with Xbox 2.

So who knows. I'm guessing PS3 will be a bit more expensive than PS2 was at launch and that it will be another logical step up in technology. Having both PSX and PS3 might actually be a good thing for Sony.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

Source: [url]http://cube.ign.com/articles/453/453647p1.html[/url]

[quote]Mario Kart Demo Disc Revealed

Nintendo reveals the giveaway with Mario Kart: Double Dash.

October 07, 2003 - Nintendo has revealed on the official Mario Kart: Double Dash website, the contents of the bonus disc that will be given away with a prepurchase of the GameCube Mario Kart title.

On the disc will be five playable demos of recent and future titles including first-party games Mario Party 5 and F-Zero GX, as well as third-party offerings, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Star Wars Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike, and Sonic Heroes. There will also be non-interactive movie clips from the following games: 1080 Avalanche, Kirby Air Ride, Pokemon Colosseum, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, Harry Potter: Quiddich World Cup, NBA Live 2004, and Spongebob Squarepants: The Search for Bikini Bottom.

Also of interest to Game Boy Advance owners, this disk will also unlock exclusive content in the upcoming Fire Emblem cartridge, including unlockable weapons, abilities, and music. You'll need a Game Boy Advance GameCube cable to take advantage of this feature.

Mario Kart: Double Dash is released on November 17th, and supplies on the Bonus Disc are limited. [/quote]

This demo disc sounds pretty good and I look forward to getting some play time at Rebel Strike and Sonic Heroes. I'd say this is a nice little bonus to the many people who were already looking forward to picking up Mario Kart: Double Dash.

[James]

[color=#707875]Here is another interesting story:[/color]

Source: [url]http://www.n-sider.com/index_content.php?page=newspage.htm#100803numberOneandTwo[/url]

[quote]Nintendo has announced that they currently hold the two top selling videogame systems in America.

[i]Nintendo GameCube has become the hottest selling video game console in America since its price was reduced to $99.99 on Sept. 25. Sales data from the week ending Oct. 4 reported from major Nintendo retailers indicates that Nintendo GameCube is currently outselling Sony's PlayStation 2 by 20 percent, and Microsoft's Xbox by 145 percent.

Consequently, Nintendo now claims the two best-selling video game systems in the country. The Game Boy Advance portable system continues to outsell each console, as it has done all year long.[/i]

Very good news indeed! It appears Nintendo has a very solid plan this year to maintain their high rate of GCN sales. First and foremost is the recent price drop, but also of equal importance, is the introduction of the Zelda compilation disc as a free bonus for gamers that adopt the GameCube this winter. These two strategies, will surly bring about a drastic change in Nintendo?s overall GCN performance in the United States, and the rest of the world.

It?s a whole new ballgame now...[/quote]

[Shinmaru]

Yeah, this is looking like a brilliant move by Nintendo. My dad was saying that he thought that Nintendo was just going to abandon the GameCube after the price drop, but that definitely does not seem like the case, fortunately.

The GBA is still going strong and the GameCube should sell even more over Christmas time what with the Zelda Compilation Disc. It's shaping up to be a very successful holiday season for Nintendo, that's for sure.

[Semjaza]

I don't know how many people are familiar with Nintendo's new ad campaign, but it apparently exists to increase awareness of the Nintendo brand itself... rather than simply the GBA or GCN.

[url]http://www.nintendo.com/whoareyou/[/url]

Anyway, Nintendo has released the first theatrical trailer using this Who Are You? idea. I figured it didn't need its own thread, and it is news, afterall.

[url]http://www.nintendo.com/whoareyou/school_out_60_qt.mov[/url]

Worth downloading for anyone. Probably Nintendo's best commercial in quite some time.

[Shinmaru]

That was a pretty good commercial. Thumbs up to Nintendo for making a commercial that I'd actually watch.

Source: [url]http://www.allrpg.com/rpgnews/news_show.php?newsid=1258[/url]

[quote]SCEA Drops The PS2's Price to $99?!
Don't count on it...



I bet many of you heard rumors about the PS2 getting a price drop to $99 this November. Rumors also mentioned that this decision is based upon the current price cut of the Gamecube($99). As mentioned, they are just rumors. Besides, we now know the truth about these rumors.

Recently, executives from SCEA said that there's no need for a price cut. But, the retail store Target received printed fliers with the price of the PS2 at $99. So, is SECA cutting the price or not? Unfortunately, having sources from other retail stores and a Wall Street analyst, there isn¡¯t any info suggesting the price cut of the PS2. Anyway, SCEA doesn't just pick one retail store for this kind of change; they usually work with the whole entire retail community.

Also, the PS2 is selling very well and lowering the price would be kind of pointless, especially to $99. (let alone to $149.99) [/quote]

So, right now, we're getting mixed messages at best when it comes to a PS2 price drop. In all likelihood, however, there probably won't be a price drop. I wonder where Target got their info from, though. It makes you wonder whether or not someone at Sony messed up and told Target that there would be a price drop.

[Semjaza]

A few things... I used to work at Target.

If anything Target would have this sale the day after Thanksgiving and that's that. There's no way that only they would be doing this for a solid week, or even forever. It would be in more ads and everyone would know by now.

They only print out ads a couple weeks ahead of time, not over a month. There's no way a normal employee would even know about this.

The second thing is that my friend cannot find any copy of this ad at his store, even where they store the future ads.

And third, there'd be a scan of this by now, like there has been in the past.

So yeah, I'm going with total BS on this one... even excluding all the reasons why Sony would never bother to do this.

[Shinmaru]

Source: [url]http://www.gamespot.com/all/news/news_6076982.html[/url]

[quote]Sega increases profit and earnings forecasts for current fiscal year that began April 1, 2003.

TOKYO--Sega dropped a bombshell today, announcing sharp increases in its financial projections. Japan's financial year begins on April 1, so Sega is currently preparing its first-half earnings reports for the 6-month period ending on September 30. [/quote]

I'd say that this is phenomenal news. Sega has won my respect over the past few years and it's great to see them turning a profit for once. Looks like their decision to become a third party developer is working wonders for them.

[Semjaza]

[url]http://www.1up.com/article2/0,4364,1371419,00.asp[/url]

This article basically makes the statement that the next Xbox will make use of IBM chipsets. Most likely a PowerPC chip.

Some people might remember that this is the same line that currently powers the GameCube.

[Shinmaru]

Very interesting stuff. Almost forgot that those were the same line of GameCube chips, heh.

Source: [url]http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/action/killbill/news_6078128.html[/url]

[quote]Kill Bill game in limbo


Remake rights-holder VU Games says its plans to develop a game based on the Tarantino movie are on hold.

When VU Games bought the game rights to Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill earlier this year, fans were split. Some relished the idea of being able to hack and slash with their very own Hattori Hanzo katana, others felt the game would be another lame movie-title cash-in a la Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

However, it turns all the controversy was for naught, since VU Games has shelved development of the title. "While Vivendi Universal Games holds the interactive rights," said a VU spokesperson, "currently there is no game in development." The spokesperson also did not elaborate on whether the title would ever be brought to consoles or PCs.

With Kill Bill in development limbo, Reservoir Dogs is the only Tarantino property being adapted into a game, although SCi (The Great Escape, Conflict: Desert Storm), its publisher and developer, has been mum about the project since first announcing it back in March.[/quote]

So, to those whom were looking forward to a Kill Bill game, this is bad news. Personally, I had not heard too much about the game and am unfamiliar with its developer, so I would not have been able to accurately predict how it would turn out. Most likely, not good, seeing how quickly the interest in a lot of movies dies out.

[Semjaza]

Vivendi Universal is MASSIVE. I'm sure at some point you've played a game from a related developer.

[Shinmaru]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Semjaza Azazel [/i]
[B]Vivendi Universal is MASSIVE. I'm sure at some point you've played a game from a related developer. [/B][/QUOTE]

If they're that massive then I probably have lol. It's just that I'm not very familiar with the name - though, there are plenty of games that I've played where I didn't know the developer -__-

EDIT: I haven't played [i]many[/i] Vivendi games but I have heard of quite a few of them. Almost all of them, in fact. Shows how much I know :p

Source: [url]http://cube.ign.com/articles/457/457955p1.html[/url]

[quote]Wario Ware
New media from this wacky Japanese release.


November 04, 2003 - The ultra-zany Game Boy Advance title Wario Ware Inc. has become a handheld favorite due to its twitch fast play mechanics and wide selection of over-the-top micro-games. Now GameCube owners can partake in the out-there fun in an all-new multiplayer enhanced console version. Currently the title is only available in Japan under the name Made in Wario, but all signs point to a 2004 release of the title in America. With that in mind we've captured a slew of revealing new movies that show off the wacky, but all-too-lovable title in motion.

In the videos below, readers can view random footage from some of the game's absolutely baffling cut-scenes, which are so psychedelic and weird that one can't help but shake their head to them in pure amazement. In these, the Wario Ware gang, an interesting cast of odd characters, travels by taxi through outer space and to extraterrestrial planets -- for no particular reason.
We also have a fine selection of new single- and multiplayer battles full of crazy dance parties and giant Warios, among other things.[/quote]

Some new stuff on the GCN version of Wario Ware at IGN. Screens, videos, etc. I'm more than a bit excited about the GCN Wario Ware because I'm probably one of the few people who doesn't own the GBA original lol. Just another great game for me to look forward to.

[I, Colossus]

[color=#006699]Just browsing the interweb (GameFaqs) and I read this on the headlines "Ex-Nintendo boss goes back to his roots". Confused and curious I decided to take a look. It seems Yamauchi is going way back to the 1800s when Nintendo was founded as a card game company! Cool stuff if you're interested in Nintendo's history.[/color]

[quote][i]From GameSpot[/i]

[b]TOKYO--According to the Kyoto Journal, former Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi, age 76, will become the president of the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Project foundation. The foundation is dedicated to promoting the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu, an anthology of 100 short poems by 100 different Japanese poets written between the 7th and 13th century.

The Hyakunin Isshu is also the basis for a traditional card game where a participant reads the first half of a poem and other players must find the correct card with the second half of the poem written on it. (Gamers will recall that Nintendo Co. Ltd. was started as a playing card manufacturer.) The foundation hopes that the promotion of the Hyakunin Isshu will result in greater awareness of the poems, and that it also is responsible for encouraging more tourists to visit Kyoto.

The foundation will be run on a budget of approximately 1 billion yen ($9.1 million), most which will be contributed by Yamauchi. The project will begin by establishing a museum dedicated to the Hyakunin Isshu in the Sagano district of Kyoto, where the anthology is said to been collated. The foundation is also planning a tour throughout Japan to promote the Hyakunin Isshu card games. Although no details were given, there are also plans of developing a software application themed to the Hyakunin Isshu.

"When thinking about Kyoto, I felt we need more tourism attractions," Yamauchi recently said. "The Ogura Hyakunin Isshu Project has a wonderful vision, so I decided to give it my full support."
[/b][/quote]

[James]

[color=#707875]Interesting news here.

Source: [url]http://cube.ign.com/articles/442/442633p1.html[/url][/color]

[quote]Occupying third place in console sales, Nintendo's September 25 price cut to $99 seemed like an act of desperation. Even though GameCubes were flying off shelves in record numbers during the first week of the price drop, many speculated that this was simply a quick surge in reaction to the price drop and sales would soon return to normal numbers. However, Nintendo has surprised many with its steady GameCube sales that have shown no signs of tapering off -- even after two months.[/quote]

[quote]Today, [b]Nintendo announced that its console had surpassed the sales of the Playstation 2[/b], which makes the GameCube the top selling console for Thanksgiving week. According to internal sales data (not NPD), [b]Nintendo's console sold more than half a million units during the week of November 24[/b] (which is almost as much as its Game Boy Advance that tallied 600,000 units over the same time period). [/quote]

[color=#707875]Very interesting stuff. I think people underestimate Nintendo sometimes. Most people in the Nintendo-centric gaming media (at least, well-informed people) were leaning toward the idea that GameCube would be at its most competitive in the fourth quarter of this year, and throughout 2004.

We are also now starting to see the results of Satoru Iwata's plans for GameCube, at least as far as third party exclusive support goes. I think 2004 will be a big year for GameCube.

I also think that GameCube's success in the latter half of its life will put Nintendo in a strong position to bolt out of the gates for the next generation -- with both strong hardware and software support. My feeling is that in the next generation -- provided GameCube hits the target -- Nintendo will be in a position to leapfrog PS3 to the number one position, in terms of market share. It wouldn't surprise me. [/color]

[Desbreko]

[color=indigo]That is interesting. I thought the price drop would definitely help the GCN's sales beyond just the first week or so of the cut, but I didn't think it would be able to push it above the PS2. (Even if it doesn't stay there). I bet the free Zelda: Collector's Edition disc also helped.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

Yeah, I bet the Zelda Collection disc (plus the $80 price tag) helped convince more than a few people to buy a GameCube. I mean, how often can you get a console [i]and[/i] a game (which is four games in one, no less) for the same price as a handheld console? Not very often, I'd presume.

With that said, I still suscribed to Nintendo Power (and sold my soul, as Shy told me yesterday) to get the disc, heh.

Source: [url]http://www.allrpg.com/rpgnews/news_show.php?newsid=1420[/url]

[quote]NEW YORK-Dec. 2, 2003-Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO) announced today that it has completed the purchase of TDK Mediactive, Inc. ("TDK"), a California based publisher of video game franchises based on popular licensed properties, including The Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Land Before Time, Robotech, The Muppets and Corvette.

The terms of the acquisition were modified from those previously announced on September 3, 2003 principally to reflect the termination of TDK's videogame publishing rights for future versions of DreamWorks LLC's motion picture Shrek. However, the consideration payable to the shareholders of TDK, other than TDK USA Corp. ("TDK USA"), TDK's majority stockholder, has not been reduced.

Take-Two has purchased TDK for approximately $12.8 million, consisting of $0.55 per share for each of the 23,005,885 shares outstanding (approximately $12.6 million) and approximately $0.2 million to retire outstanding stock options. In addition, as a condition to the purchase agreement, Take-Two has satisfied approximately $9.7 million of outstanding liabilities (which as of the closing date constituted all of the liabilities of TDK to TDK USA) consisting of working capital advances and debt between TDK and TDK USA, by paying $4.3 million in cash and issuing $5.4 million in restricted shares of Take-Two common stock (or approximately 165,000 shares) to TDK USA. The working capital advances were principally for product development milestone payments, marketing expenses and advances to licensors incurred since July 18, 2003. These amounts are effectively reduced by approximately $8 million owed to TDK by Take-Two principally for products distributed by Take-Two under the terms of the distribution agreement with TDK.

Commenting on the acquisition, Jeff Lapin, Chief Executive Officer, said, "The addition of TDK's well established mass market and children's licensed properties will complement our portfolio of proprietary brands, and will provide an excellent platform for Take-Two to further expand and diversify its product offerings. In addition, we believe our proven product development and marketing capabilities will enhance TDK's product offerings and our distribution resources will offer additional outlets for TDK's products."

Effective immediately, certain trademark license agreements covering the TDK and Mediactive trademarks have been terminated, except for limited sell-through rights respecting existing products. Also, effective immediately, TDK Mediactive is changing its corporate name to Take-Two Licensing, Inc.

TDK was represented in this transaction by Europlay Capital Advisors, a Los Angeles, California based private advisory firm specializing in media and entertainment companies. Averil Capital Markets Group, a Los Angeles, California based private investment banking firm specializing in small- and mid-cap publicly-traded companies, was a co-advisor to TD[/quote]

Interesting stuff here - both Take-Two and TDK have been around for a while and I'm curious to see what kind of games can grow out of Take-Two buying TDK.