Slashdot Mirror

GamesIndustry.biz has an article up about the Big N's future plans. Shigeru Miyamoto stated recently that Nintendo plans to be fully supporting online play within a few years, with the DS leading the way. From the article: "Miyamoto, credited as the design genius behind key Nintendo franchises including Zelda and Mario, told the magazine that online gaming will reach the mainstream within three to four years, and that Nintendo will be moving in that direction as a result." Gamespot also has details on upcoming Gamecube games, including another Mario, the next Legend of Zelda, Donkey Konga 3, Mario Baseball, and a new Kirby game.

As he does every few months, SirBruce has updated his page detailing Massively Multiplayer Online Game subscription numbers. No major additions this time around, just some minor tweaks reflecting recent trends. FFXI is way up, with EQ taking a slight dip. No data on EQ2 is included yet. For slightly cynical further analysis, Anyuzer provides us with his opinions.

The Official PSP Website has launched with details on the system and games. GamesIndustry.biz has a list of the PSP Japanese Launch Titles we can expect when the system hits retailers. From the Article: With just over three weeks to go until the PlayStation Portable launches in Japan, Sony has revealed that buyers will have six games to choose from on day one, with around 20 games total due out before the end of December."

geekboy_x writes "At the Halo launch event a senior Microsoft VP took time out to comment on the coming battle between the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP. In a nutshell, he thinks that Nintendo's domination of the handheld market will make this a rough go for Sony. He also, as is apparently required by Microsoft law, makes a candid yet derogatory comment about Linux." A more personal version of commentary made two days ago, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz.

GamesIndustry.biz has the story that Microsoft Game Studios will be porting games to the Gizmondo handheld device. The "handheld console" is set to recieve some of the Microsoft greats, such as Age of Empires and Mechwarrior. From the article: "The system runs Microsoft's Windows CE operating system, which may explain in part the software giant's willingness to support it."

GamesIndustry.biz editor Rob Fahey has an editorial discussing how the games industry is beginning to find its own voice alongside the move and music businesses. He uses the hype and launch of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas as an example of the increasing popular culture acceptance of games and gaming. From the Article: "The videogames industry is fond of comparing itself with the movie and music industries - as long as the figures show it in a positive light, of course. For years, a host of slightly dodgy statistics have been dragged out at the drop of a hat to prove that videogames generate more revenue than rival mediums, usually missing such crucial points as the fact that movies generate both box office and DVD/video revenues."

GamesIndustry.biz has the story that major retailers Gamestop and EBGames are likely going to stop DS Preorders because they're coming so fast that they won't be able to meet demand when the system launches. From the article: "It appears that six games will be available on day one - Nintendo's Super Mario 64 DS, Sega's Feel The Magic XY/XX, Activision's Spider-Man 2, Ubisoft's Asphalt Urban GT and two from EA - Madden NFL 2005 and The Urbz: Sims in the City." Gamespot also has details on the handheld shortage.

SetupWeasel writes "Gamesindustry.biz is reporting that "Sony Computer Entertainment boss Ken Kutaragi has admitted that graphically intensive games will drain the PSP's battery more rapidly than the quoted figures." Sony also said that this would be corrected in future revisions of the hardware, but we know how well that plan worked for Nokia."

Holidays are always interesting times in the Massive Gaming market and this weekend is no exception. Spooks, trick or treating, interviews, anniversaries, and conferences are just some of the Halloween weekend news to share. Read on for the details.

City of Heroes is running a Trick or Treat and Zombie invasion event this weekend. Folks in Europe looking to get their cape on can look forward to participating sometime next year.

Anarchy Online is celebrating the season with a holiday ball and costume contest, as well as nanotech transformations and monster sightings.

Final Fantasy Online players and developers have a lot to be happy about this weekend. Today is the one-year anniversary of the North American launch, and they're throwing a party to celebrate. In-game, the annual trick or treating, costuming, and spookery is going on. This year they're also throwing around some glamours to let players take the part of monsters for a while. Square-Enix revised upwards it's earning estimates this week, giving even executives reason to smile.

In non-holiday news, Richard Garriot was interviewed by HomeLAN about the upcoming Tabula Rasa game, and MMORPG.com has some new info on Dungeons and Dragons Online from the lead designer.

Finally, the Second Annual State of Play conference is this weekend, drawing Virtual World academics from all over to celebrate Halloween by lecturing. Nerd on, guys.

Update: 10/28 18:50 GMT by Z : There's a press release going around stating that City of Villians playtesters will be drawn from the ranks of veteran CoH players.

British developer Argonaut appears to be undergoing serious restructuring, according to GamesIndustry.biz. The company, known recently for its work on the PS2 ports of the Harry Potter games, is now attempting to sell off studio and property assets. The BBCs take on the matter has more details about the studio's cash problems and management reactions.

AndyDavies writes "Sony has announced that the highly anticipated Gran Turismo 4 will be delayed to a 2005 release in PAL regions due to the localization process. The game is still on schedule for a 2004 release in North American and Japan."

BlueMoon writes "On January 5th at 6.30pm PST, the night before the opening of the CES 2005 event, Bill Gates will give a pre-show keynote speech in Las Vegas. A public announcement of Microsoft's next generation Xbox is widely expected."

PSP launch delays have been discussed before, but GamesIndustry.biz is running an article today in which network systems exec Izumi Kawanishi confirms the system may be delayed. This despite continuing announcements regarding launch titles for the system. From the article: "Speaking in an interview with Impress Watch AV, Kawanishi said that it is still possible that the console will be released this year in Japan, but that this depends on whether game publishers will have software ready for launch."

PSP launch delays have been discussed before, but GamesIndustry.biz is running an article today in which network systems exec Izumi Kawanishi confirms the system may be delayed. This despite continuing announcements regarding launch titles for the system. From the article: "Speaking in an interview with Impress Watch AV, Kawanishi said that it is still possible that the console will be released this year in Japan, but that this depends on whether game publishers will have software ready for launch."

syberanarchy writes "Gamespot reports that Halo 2 has already been leaked to the internet via French newsgroups and P2P networks, almost a month before release! Any chance this bombshell move could force MS/Bungie to push up the release date?" See also gamesindustry.biz and The Register.

Thanks to TerraNova for the heads up about the possible resurrection of Warhammer Online. The game was cancelled back in June, after several years of work on the project and rumors that it was close to completion. GamesIndustry.biz has the story as well: "Cancelled massively multiplayer title Warhammer Online is back in development, according to comments attributed to Karl Jeffery, CEO of developer Climax, and could be released in around 18 months time."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for an article outlining comments made by Nintendo VP of sales and marketing Reggie Fils-Aime. His comments confirm that Nintendo's next console will release around the same time as the PS3, and bashed MS for rushing to the next console generation. "Our focus is this: we will bring Revolution to the marketplace roughly at the same time as the competition," Fils-Aime told US website IGN. "We are driving our timetables based on what we believe Sony will do."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article regarding new PSP news, including statements by Sony CTO Masa Chatani that "our plan to sell the PSP within the year is secure". He also revealed some new features of the PSP, such as a "home page" type screen, while being quite quiet on the battery issue. Commentators still seem to find it unlikely that the PSP will be out before 2005.

Thanks to Gamespot for a breakdown of the official DS Launch Title lineup. The selection includes lots of big names, including The Sims, Madden, Mario, Metroid, Pokemon, and Spider Man 2. The system will also feature a remake of Final Fantasy III (jp), one of the most outstanding games ever to be released for the famicom system.Update: 10/07 20:57 GMT by Z : Gamesindustry.biz has a story on this as well, adding details and stating that there will be a DS Zelda title as well!

Thanks to the BBC and GamesIndustry.biz for their stories on American game company expansions into Asia. Electronic Arts is opening a dev studio in China, hoping to open up the world's largest market to online gaming. PCBang style internet cafes are rapidly becoming big business there. Microsoft, on the other hand, is getting serious about the Japanese market. Their next gen console is already being hyped to Japanese developers. The form factor and design are going to take into account Japanese tastes, as will their marketing campaign. The next Xbox may offer Japanese and American consumers a fascinating new feature as well, with Bill Gates himself confirming the development of spectator mode for the Xbox. It's unclear whether that would be rolled out for the current Xbox console, or will have to wait until their next product.

Thanks to the BBC and GamesIndustry.biz for their stories on American game company expansions into Asia. Electronic Arts is opening a dev studio in China, hoping to open up the world's largest market to online gaming. PCBang style internet cafes are rapidly becoming big business there. Microsoft, on the other hand, is getting serious about the Japanese market. Their next gen console is already being hyped to Japanese developers. The form factor and design are going to take into account Japanese tastes, as will their marketing campaign. The next Xbox may offer Japanese and American consumers a fascinating new feature as well, with Bill Gates himself confirming the development of spectator mode for the Xbox. It's unclear whether that would be rolled out for the current Xbox console, or will have to wait until their next product.

An Anonymous Reader alerted us to the fact that the FFXI connectivity issue reported earlier has been resolved. They finally acknowledged the issue and changed the ports used to collect and send data. Meanwhile, with the recent introduction of the game into Europe and the release of a new expansion, gamesindustry.biz sat down for an interview with FFXI producer Hiromichi Tanaka.

AssaultOnBattery writes "The fine folks over at GamesIndustry.biz are reporting that Sony has found a unique solution to the problem of battery life on the PSP - making their game developers solve it for them. According to the story, Sony is going to give devs a battery emulator which will tell them if their game is within acceptable power consumption limits."

AssaultOnBattery writes "The fine folks over at GamesIndustry.biz are reporting that Sony has found a unique solution to the problem of battery life on the PSP - making their game developers solve it for them. According to the story, Sony is going to give devs a battery emulator which will tell them if their game is within acceptable power consumption limits."

An anonymous reader writes "Sony CEO Ken Kutaragi has today announced that Sony has finished work on the Playstation Portable hardware, and the handheld is scheduled to be released later this year. No details have emerged on the pricing of the PSP, but Kutaragi stated that plans for movies on the UMD - the disc format the PSP will use , are now in the final stages."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for their article regarding the manufacturing plans for the Xbox 2. "Speaking at a press conference, senior vice president Kenneth Kin said that ... manufacturing plans for Xbox 2 chips is 'proceeding according to plan,' scotching recent murmuring about a possible further delay to Microsoft's schedule for the system."

An anonymous reader submits "In an interview on Wired News, Bob Wiederhold, President and CEO of Transitive Corporation said QuickTransit will allow the Xbox Next (aka Xbox2, which will have a PowerPC CPU) to run first-generation Xbox games which were written for an x86 Intel chip. Transitive is a provider of software that enables transportability of applications across multiple processor and operating system pairs. This could mean Microsoft will after all make their next generation consoles backward compatible, unlike what was announced in June." I can't quite tell how hypothetically he's speaking; the no-performance-hit OS switching the article talks about sounds pretty hard to believe.

Jane_the_Great writes "The number of PS2 owners who have ventured online with their consoles has passed 1.4 million users. This article cites SCEA Executive VP Andrew House as saying, "What I think is particularly interesting is, not only are we seeing a lot of the numbers being driven off the Network Adapter bundle, but consistently there are sales of the standalone Network Adapter." Does this growth signal the arrival of online console gaming? And if there are so many people online, why can't I find someone that will play Madden 2005 like a reasonable and polite person?"

cdneng2 writes "gamesindustry.biz has the scoop that Nintendo is dropping the GBA price down to $80 in North America later this week! The $20 cut is aimed to stimulate sales for the Christmas run-up. The article also indicated that DS is rumoured to sell for $179 US."

cdneng2 writes "gamesindustry.biz has the scoop that Nintendo is dropping the GBA price down to $80 in North America later this week! The $20 cut is aimed to stimulate sales for the Christmas run-up. The article also indicated that DS is rumoured to sell for $179 US."

UID1000000 writes "MSNBC reports that companies like Nielsen are implementing tracked advertising in video games. Viacom is also considering in-game advertising. I can't wait until your first person shooter stops and drinks a nice cold refreshing soda."

Thanks to Reuters/CNET for the news that both the Xbox and PlayStation 2 have received price cuts in Europe, as: "Microsoft said it would cut 25 percent off the price of its Xbox in continental Europe, bringing the price to 149.99 euros ($183.70). The software giant also cut the U.K. price to 99.99 pounds ($183.10) from 129.99 pounds ($236.96)." Almost immediately following this: "Market leader Sony cut the price of its top-selling PlayStation 2 console by a quarter to 105 pounds ($191.43) in the United Kingdom and to between 149 euros ($183.74) and 159 euros ($196.05) in the euro zone." Gamesindustry.biz adds: "Retailers will hope to see a significant sales boost for both consoles from the price cuts, much as was experienced by US retail back in June when Microsoft, and then Sony, slashed the price of their consoles within the space of a month of each other."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its report on last week's Edinburgh International Games Festival, as the author suggests: "Nowhere.. has the maturing of the games industry into a fully fledged member of the media family been more obvious... as interactive entertainment returned to the Scottish capital's world renowned festival for a second year." The article continues: "If we were to pick one element of the EIGF to single out for special praise, it would be the Game Screenings programme... a chance for the public to see the people behind the biggest upcoming games and to put a friendly, human face on the developers who create the entertainment they're so passionate about." LoadedInc also has significant coverage from EIGF, also recently mentioned on Slashdot, "detailing the best of this year's discussions... along with audio recordings of the sessions."

KBV writes "According to Gamesindustry.biz: 'Lara Croft creator Toby Gard has joined [Eidos-owned] US development studio Crystal Dynamics to work as a senior designer on the next Tomb Raider title - marking his return to the series after leaving Core Design following the launch of the original game. The move follows reports that Gard's own studio, Confounding Factor, was set to disband after the release of Galleon - its long-delayed Xbox adventure title, which came out in Europe and North America this summer after almost seven years in development.'"

Thanks to Blue's News for covering the latest developments in a UK videogame violence story, in which the Rockstar North-created game Manhunt was very allegedly implicated in "a grisly murder" - it's revealed: "The game was present in the victim's home, not the killer's... This may present a problem for those looking to turn this case to their own ends." Nonetheless, previously mentioned attorney Jack Thompson is jumping straight on the case, even from an continent away, according to GameDaily, as he rages: "We are going to destroy Rockstar, you can count on that... [ESA head] Doug Lowenstein makes Saddam Hussein look like a post-reformed Pinocchio." Finally, Gamesindustry.biz injects a thoughtful note into the mayhem, arguing: "Rockstar do not emerge from this affair smelling of roses... game makers could help the case a lot by trying to push the boundaries in terms of gameplay, rather than gore."

Thanks to Gamesindustry.biz for covering the news that Sega has announced Shenmue Online, a PC MMORPG, "being co-developed and co-published by Sega and Korean firm JC Entertainment", as part of "its new plans to enter the Chinese online gaming market." JC Entertainment are the Korean-based makers of Rush Online (formerly Priest) and the popular-in-Asia Redmoon, and the press release on Shenmue-Online.com states the game, part of the sometimes adored Dreamcast/Xbox franchise, will be a "MMO Action RPG in which tens of thousands of players will participate in the virtual world of Shenmue staged in China including Hong Kong in 1980's. Players, acting as militants, will use mysterious powers, kung-fu, Chinese weapons and Qigong in real-time fight-action."

CFresquet writes "Gamesindustry.biz reports that Electronic Arts has purchased developer Criterion Software. Criterion is the game developer behind Burnout 3 and 'anticipated first person shooter Black', but also makes RenderWare, arguably the most popular 3rd party game engine solution used in PC, console, and hand-held game development. With this purchase, EA now suddenly has its fingers in the development of many of its competitor's games. Formerly independent studios now find themselves unexpectedly partnered with the gorilla of the industry, and EA could be in a position to leverage its ownership of this technology when negotiating with publishing agreements with studios." Intriguingly, this means that the engine technology powering Grand Theft Auto 3/Vice City (and GTA: San Andreas?) is now EA-owned, though Criterion's David Lau-Kee claims "a win for everybody", arguing the takeover gives RenderWare "the capability to step up today and say to the entire industry, you know, 'We'll help you out?'"

An anonymous reader writes "One of the brave few: hot on the heels of the recent lawsuit filed against Vivendi Universal for back wages due to a developer who was allegedly asked to alter his timecard, Rob Fahey of gamesindustry.biz has taken the bold step of taking the position that the insane hours game developers are routinely asked to work are might not be in the industry's best interest, and in fact might be less profitable than planning projects well."

An anonymous reader writes "One of the brave few: hot on the heels of the recent lawsuit filed against Vivendi Universal for back wages due to a developer who was allegedly asked to alter his timecard, Rob Fahey of gamesindustry.biz has taken the bold step of taking the position that the insane hours game developers are routinely asked to work are might not be in the industry's best interest, and in fact might be less profitable than planning projects well."

Thanks to Gamesindustry.biz for its article regarding predictions of a tough 2004 holiday season for all videogame publishers, as an analyst report from Banc of America Securities claims "competition in the games market will be much more intense than last year", and argues that "some games will just not receive any shelf space from retailers, and initial shipments of titles will be very low, even by historical standards." The report goes on to highlight some non-specific specifics: "We have very low expectations for games of other developers with less-known brands... including Acclaim, Midway (except Mortal Kombat), Atari, Eidos, Vivendi (apart from Half-Life 2, if it is released) and even Microsoft (apart from Halo 2)... Expect many disasters this holiday." Is there really a reason for game creators to worry about what sales Santa will bring them?

An anonymous reader writes "Biz news site Gamesindustry.biz is reporting that Microsoft's Xbox 2 won't be backward compatible with games for the current Xbox, and quoting 'sources close to Microsoft's senior Xbox executives' explaining some of the thinking behind the decision. All very cloak and dagger, although I guess whoever told them would probably be in line for a firing if they found out... So, is Microsoft right or wrong on this one? Have any Slashdot readers ever actually used the backwards compatibility on their PlayStation 2?"

An anonymous reader writes "Biz news site Gamesindustry.biz is reporting that Microsoft's Xbox 2 won't be backward compatible with games for the current Xbox, and quoting 'sources close to Microsoft's senior Xbox executives' explaining some of the thinking behind the decision. All very cloak and dagger, although I guess whoever told them would probably be in line for a firing if they found out... So, is Microsoft right or wrong on this one? Have any Slashdot readers ever actually used the backwards compatibility on their PlayStation 2?"

Game Boy writes "Brit games business site Gamesindustry.biz has posted a fascinating editorial asking whether Microsoft is about to shoot itself in the foot over Xbox 2 by rushing to launch the console years ahead of its rivals' next-generation platforms. It's a pretty good analysis of how Microsoft is thinking about this marketplace, and why they could be pretty drastically wrong - I work at a major games publisher, and a lot of people here are worried about exactly the same things, but it's rare to see anyone actually discussing them openly. Xbox has done pretty well so far, but Microsoft could be heading for a disaster that even Bill's billions won't dig them out of..."

Game Boy writes "Brit games business site Gamesindustry.biz has posted a fascinating editorial asking whether Microsoft is about to shoot itself in the foot over Xbox 2 by rushing to launch the console years ahead of its rivals' next-generation platforms. It's a pretty good analysis of how Microsoft is thinking about this marketplace, and why they could be pretty drastically wrong - I work at a major games publisher, and a lot of people here are worried about exactly the same things, but it's rare to see anyone actually discussing them openly. Xbox has done pretty well so far, but Microsoft could be heading for a disaster that even Bill's billions won't dig them out of..."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article discussing significant PlayStation 2 sales increases following the price cut to $149 last month. The piece quantifies: "Data released this week by Sony Computer Entertainment America shows that the console's sales rose by some 216 per cent in the week immediately following the price cut, with an increase of 141 per cent over the full period since the cut", and this means: "The increase in sales will have propelled the PlayStation 2 well past its console rivals, after Sony's platform slipped behind the Xbox in monthly sales for the first time since the launch of the Microsoft console." It's also explained: "The increased sales noted since the price cut have actually pushed year on year sales of the PS2 upwards, with 26 per cent growth on the same period last year - and should hopefully help to slow the overall decline in hardware sales which has hit the USA so far this year."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article discussing Atari CEO Bruno Bonnell's comments on the relative mystery of Sony's PSP handheld, arguing that "there's simply not enough information available for publishers to make educated decisions about it." As for development costs for making PSP games, Bonnell cynically estimated: "From one cent to $50 million, I have no idea", suggesting that "there's no way to accurately predict costs on the device at this point." GI.Biz argues: "This is an unusual comment - because one area where Sony has not skimped is on providing development tools for the PSP to its partners", and 1UP has more informative comments from EA CEO Larry Probst at the same financial conference, commenting on PSP dev costs per game: "We're speculating that the $1-2 million range is a good estimate."

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article discussing the quashing of rumors regarding media giant Viacom buying Electronic Arts, with Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone (also in the process of privately buying into Midway) saying: "We have looked at the obvious companies like Electronic Arts... but their price is so high, it would be dilutive to our earnings. We have ruled it out." Meanwhile, EA's annual financial report has been released, showing "net revenue for fiscal 2004 was $2,957.1 million, up 19.1 percent", and also confirming "an [in-progress] workforce reduction of approximately 117 personnel in development and administrative departments", following the closure/relocation of "the majority of our leased studio facility in Walnut Creek, California and our entire owned studio facility in Austin, Texas." The financials also note that rising online sales from casual gaming portal Pogo.com was "partially offset by a decrease in subscription net revenue from The Sims Online, Ultima Online, and Earth & Beyond subscription services."

arcade_memories writes "GamesIndustry.biz reports that British tech company Imagination is building a new cutting edge arcade system for Sega, which will launch early next year. It's going to be based on the next generation of the PowerVR hardware, apparently - earlier versions (as well as being marginally popular PC graphics boards) powered the Dreamcast and the Naomi arcade board. This is interesting because Naomi was the last time Sega actually built its own arcade hardware, so this is a sure sign that they're bumping up the importance of the arcade market - just like new chairman Hajime Satomi (president of arcade and gambling machine company Sammy) wants, right?" Elsewhere, there are also new reports on Sega/AM2's new Chihiro-based CCG arcade game Quest Of D, featuring an interesting "touch-screen interface" concept, albeit on existing Xbox-based hardware.

arcade_memories writes "GamesIndustry.biz reports that British tech company Imagination is building a new cutting edge arcade system for Sega, which will launch early next year. It's going to be based on the next generation of the PowerVR hardware, apparently - earlier versions (as well as being marginally popular PC graphics boards) powered the Dreamcast and the Naomi arcade board. This is interesting because Naomi was the last time Sega actually built its own arcade hardware, so this is a sure sign that they're bumping up the importance of the arcade market - just like new chairman Hajime Satomi (president of arcade and gambling machine company Sammy) wants, right?" Elsewhere, there are also new reports on Sega/AM2's new Chihiro-based CCG arcade game Quest Of D, featuring an interesting "touch-screen interface" concept, albeit on existing Xbox-based hardware.

Thanks to GamesIndustry.biz for its article discussing an interview with Square Enix president Yoichi Wada, as he discusses a perceived "evolution in the thinking" at Microsoft, and "said that his company... would consider working on Xbox 2." The analysis, which uses as its base a GameSpot interview conducted during E3, has Wada mentioning of Microsoft's Xbox Live service: "The attempt was to create a closed network in a closed environment. That is completely contrary to our concept of networked business", and ends by suggesting: "Reading between the lines of Wada's comments, it seems likely that [more 'open' online] concessions could be integrated into the standard terms of the online service on Xbox 2... making the Xbox into a much more attractive platform for companies such as EA and Square Enix."