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Nintendo, Sony, and id Software have all been given Emmy awards for technology-related contributions to gaming and entertainment. Nintendo's Wiimote, obviously, garnered an Emmy for Peripheral Development and Technoogical Impact of Video Game Controllers, while id collectively received two awards. John Carmack was given The Pioneering Development Work in 3D Game Engines award, and id as a whole received an accolade for Quake's rendering technology. As reader NexusTw1n points out, though, there was something odd about Sony's award. "On Monday, Sony claimed their revolutionary SIXAXIS controller had been honoured with an Emmy , leaving many wondering why the Wiimote had been ignored. Yesterday, that press release was clarified, with a statement making it clear the award was actually for the PS2 Dual Shock controller, rather than the new PS3 model."

In yet more displays of solidarity with the creator of Super Columbine Massacre RPG, additional Slamdance finalists have withdrawn. The incredibly creative Toblo, as well as the titles Once Upon a Time and Everyday Shooter have taken themselves out of consideration in protest of the Columbine game's removal from the competition. Only eight of the original 14 finalists are still in the competition, with several of those having gotten together to write a letter of protest to the contest's organizers. Danny Leddonne, creator of the Columbine title, has spoken with Ars Technica and Next Gen in recent days, and touches on both his controversial title and the hoopla that now surrounds it. Update: 01/10 20:21 GMT by Z : It doesn't end. Slamdance has now lost a sponsor over this.

In yet more displays of solidarity with the creator of Super Columbine Massacre RPG, additional Slamdance finalists have withdrawn. The incredibly creative Toblo, as well as the titles Once Upon a Time and Everyday Shooter have taken themselves out of consideration in protest of the Columbine game's removal from the competition. Only eight of the original 14 finalists are still in the competition, with several of those having gotten together to write a letter of protest to the contest's organizers. Danny Leddonne, creator of the Columbine title, has spoken with Ars Technica and Next Gen in recent days, and touches on both his controversial title and the hoopla that now surrounds it. Update: 01/10 20:21 GMT by Z : It doesn't end. Slamdance has now lost a sponsor over this.

Next Generation is reporting that what-was-once E3, and what could have been the 'GamePro Expo', has now been renamed to the Entertainment for All expo. 'E For All', for short, will feature an open door policy: all you have to do to get in is pay the $100 admittance fee. From the article: "E for All will be held at the L.A.C.C. October 18-20, 2007, just as the holiday gift-buying season ramps up. Attendees will be able to buy exhibitors' products from the show floor. Dolaher wasn't yet ready to announce exactly which companies are participating as contracts are being worked out. Other highlights at the event will include hands-on opportunities to try out the latest games and gadgets, videogame tourneys, a job fair and 'family-friendly offerings.'"

Next Generation reports on Jack Thompson's next big fight: Grand Theft Auto IV. A mass email was sent to news organizations entitled 'Bill Gates in the Crosshairs'. He vows to 'rally the troops' against the release of the next chapter in Rockstar's sandbox-style crime series. The game is due out sometime this year, on both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. From the article: "Thompson said that he would 'undertake various means to prohibit' the sale of GTA IV to minors, and added, 'Please have your lawyers [Microsoft chairman Bill Gates', that is] contact me in order that such sales will be prevented.' He also said that the ICCR report 'makes it abundantly clear that unless such prohibitions are in place, then millions of units of the new Grand Theft Auto game will be sold directly to minors.' He continued, 'I am quite intent upon making sure that that does not happen. I and others will endeavor to stop Microsoft from participating in any fashion, directly or indirectly, in such sales to minors.'"

Ground Glass writes "After all of the self-awarding that goes on in the games industry this year, it's nice to be reminded that there were actually some pretty big industry disasters in 2006. Who can forget that timeless Gizmondo car crash story, for example? Or the onset of microtransactions for cheat codes? One of the Curmudgeon Gamers, Matt Matthews, lays out the worst the industry had to offer this year, from game hype to journalistic screwups, and everything in between." From the article: "3. Bill of Rights -- Void Where Prohibited by Law. We should also sit back and enjoy a steaming hot cup of schadenfreude at the expense of those tireless defenders of morality and the souls of our children: the state governments of Michigan, Minnesota, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and of course Illinois. Each has passed a law restricting the sales of videogames, and each has been stopped by the courts. Apparently there are things called 'constitutions; which grant 'rights' like 'free speech' which 'activist judges' are using to strike down the very laws which will protect our children from rock and r...videogames." He also offers up some of the cut content that didn't make it into the final article.

Next Generation has up a list of the people it considers the game industry's top 25 people of 2006. Headlining the list are the veterans of this round of the console wars, with the rest of the folks notables from individual game companies. Plus two guys who make a comic. From the article: "6. Todd Howard, Bethesda - On Xbox 360, Oblivion has sold over 800,000 copies in the U.S., generating $50 million in revenues. Todd Howard, the game's executive producer, has spent four years on an RPG that captured many gamers who did not see themselves as the types to lope around grassy fields, collecting mushrooms and perhaps doing the odd bit of combat. The game's goal was to allow players to 'live another life' and it certainly succeeded. This is what makes Oblivion one of the most important games of the decade, as well as one of the best games."

Next Generation has very, very good news for RPG fans. Interplay is going to be developing a Fallout Massively Multiplayer Online Game ... and they're in it for serious. The official announcement says that they're going to be throwing $75 Million (dollars!) at development for this thing. From the article: "Production is proposed to begin as early as 2007, with a launch slated for Q3 2010. The company's proposal expects 1 million subscribers during the first year, and projects profitability in year two, revenue of $160 million annually after its first year and net income of $50 million annually starting in year three." Those are fighting words, and the 1 Million club they're aiming for ... maybe not so easy to get into. Also, didn't Interplay go out of business?

Ground Glass writes "While there wasn't any question that November was going to be a huge month for gaming (what with those two consoles coming out and all), it's still impressive to see the numbers. In short, Nintendo's DS was the big winner with over 600,000 units sold, though the Wii and Xbox 360 also each broke half a million. The PS3 probably came in at around 200K all told for the month. Convert those numbers into dollars and you're looking at one very fat and happy industry." From the Next Generation article: "In its monthly report analyst Arcadia Investment says console sales in November topped 3.2 million units. Arcadia says hardware sales increased by at least 50% year on year, with software up about 20%. Retail dollars increased by about 25-30% to about $1.6 billion, compared to $1.3 billion in November 2005. "

Via Joystiq, an article on the Next Generation site profiling the future of LucasArts. Aside from the corporate vision on the whole, LucasArts VP of global sales and marketing Nancy MacIntyre discusses the much-drooled over 'Star Wars 07' (you may have already seen the tech demo online). She also goes on record as saying that successful franchises like BattleFront and KOTOR will return on next-gen systems. "We typically work on these games about eighteen months out. We really treat these games like they are a theatrical release from the perspective of mapping everything out. We know that we need to be out there talking early and often and so you will see us handling the basic things like [fan] websites, but we'll also do web-docs and developer diaries and behind the scenes and all the kinds of information that these core fans really want to know."

With Microsoft's Xbox Live service more popular than ever and the other two next-gen consoles almost here, news about the companies' download services is plentiful. For Nintendo, there's word of more Virtual console titles slated for early next year. NES titles include Kid Icarus, Punch-Out, and Kirby's Adventure. Sony has announced that one login will work for every game on their online service, though what you'll find behind the login will differ with every title. Finally, Xbox Live will see even more classic games in the near future. Contra hit the service yesterday, with titles from Atari slated for later this year. A version of the player vs player combat game Worms is also planned for the service. Interesting times for all three online offerings.
Update: 11/09 19:20 GMT by Z : Errr ... you might want to stay away from Contra.

Next Generation has word of the GamePro Expo's official announcement by IDG. The show will essentially be a companion to the summer E3 show, though the ESA will only be involved in advertising for the event. Consumers will enjoy games at the GamePro event, while a very select media group will attend the E3 event. From the article: "Similarities between the two events have been primarily drawn from the fact that IDG's expo will take place at the 'old' E3's former stomping grounds at the L.A.C.C., and it's expected to host tens of thousands of attendees. According to initial reports, the event was to be called the 'GamePro Expo,' although IDG has now launched a contest in which anyone 13 and over can submit an idea for the expo's name." Thank goodness.

Next Generation has word of the GamePro Expo's official announcement by IDG. The show will essentially be a companion to the summer E3 show, though the ESA will only be involved in advertising for the event. Consumers will enjoy games at the GamePro event, while a very select media group will attend the E3 event. From the article: "Similarities between the two events have been primarily drawn from the fact that IDG's expo will take place at the 'old' E3's former stomping grounds at the L.A.C.C., and it's expected to host tens of thousands of attendees. According to initial reports, the event was to be called the 'GamePro Expo,' although IDG has now launched a contest in which anyone 13 and over can submit an idea for the expo's name." Thank goodness.

Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime wants to share some good news and some bad news. The good news is that by the end of the year Nintendo expects to ship 4 million consoles. The bad news is, they still expect to sell out. From the article: "Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime hyped up the console launch, saying, 'Because of demand, we're urging shoppers not to get complacent. The level of demand we're seeing goes beyond the ordinary. Retailers are telling us a significant fraction of customers pre-ordering Wii are nontraditional gamers...' The company expects to ship 6 million Wii units globally by the end of March 2007, on par with Sony's worldwide shipment targets for PS3. Microsoft has sold 6 million Xbox 360 units to date since its launch in late November 2005, and hopes to sell 10 million by the end of the calendar year." So, fewer units than the analysts wanted. Still an impressive number.

Happy Halloween, game folks. There are a couple of creepy-themed game articles floating around the web today, and they're all lists ... disturbingly. eToyChest gives us the top five most horrifying moments in games. Next Generation offers a ten-point guide to inspiring fear in games. And finally, GameTrailers.com has an entertaining top ten scariest games list, complete with video. Even if I don't agree with some of their placements within the list, I think their #1 is a pretty accurate pick.

Nate writes to mention the news that Jack Thompson has issued a cease and desist for the new Mortal Kombat:Armageddon title. Says Mr. Thompson: "It has today come to my attention that the newly recently Mortal Kombat: Armageddon contains an unauthorized commercial exploitation of my name, photograph, image, and likeness within the game." Thompson's likeness has appeared on websites in the game over the last few days as a result of his construction in the 'build-a-fighter' mode. His image is not actually a selectable character in the game, a fact he's chosen to skirt in his demands to Midway. If that's not enough Jack Thompson news for today, Game|Life has the video and commentary on Thompson's dressing down by the judge in the Bully case. Video courtesy of the Destructoid site.

Next Generation is hosting an article attempting to prognosticate the spread of review scores for the PS3 and Wii. Author Matt Matthews does this by examining historical precedents for previous system launches. From the article: "Next month Sony's PlayStation 3 will launch with only two games which will get an average review score of 90% or better. On the other hand, Nintendo's Wii will have three games which will average scores of 90% or better. And it is almost certain that each of those consoles will launch with two absolute stinkers, games which consistently score below 60%... How can we know this? Because history tells us that this is what happens with console launch titles." For even more analysis of the data, Matthews has additional charts on curmudgeon gamer.

Next Generation is carrying an interview with Epic Designer Cliffy Bleszinksi, where he discusses shooters in the next-gen era, what it's like to work with Microsoft, and how it feels to wrap up Gears of War. From the article: "As a designer I don't know if it's ever possible to be fully satisfied but my gut tells me, 'yes'. I sit down and I play the game and I have a blast with it, whether it be single player versus or co-op. I mean, co-op's especially bad. I feel like I'm seeing the whole experience completely new. It's like, if you ever see a cool movie and you bring a friend to see it who hadn't seen the movie yet, right? It's that shared experience, that makes co-op so great."

Despite lower-than-expected launch numbers for Sony's next console, in an interview with Next Generation Kaz Hirai says he still expects a million units to be available by the end of the year. He goes on to discuss other elements of the launch, and Sony's expectations for this momentous event. From the article: "For launch day there is going to be a bit less than 20. For the launch window there is going to be a bit more. We are looking at the portfolio of the third party publishers for the launch day, and we are asking them which titles are going to be available for the second week, which ones are going to be available for the third week, and which titles are going to be for the end of the year. Basically we are managing the portfolio of the software titles everybody has, once this process is done we are deciding which titles are going where, and then we are going to have the final list of the launch titles for the US launch."

Ground Glass writes "Over at Next Generation there's a comprehensive feature on the books that everyone in games should read. It's by game designer and author Ernest Adams, and attacks the medium from every possible angle. Adding these books to your Amazon wishlist could only give you a better understanding of where games have been and where they are (and should be) going."

Next Generation is reporting on comments from Ubisoft, indicating that they are heavily relying on the Wii to fend off advances from business adversary Electronic Arts. From the article: "Ubisoft vowed to stay independent [after EA made inroads to a buyout], and it plans to keep it that way. 'Our goal is not to sell to EA but to beat EA,' said Laurent Detoc (pictured), president of Ubisoft North America in a Reuters interview this week. He hopes that an early adoption of the Wii platform will help push Ubisoft up from the fifth largest independent publisher in North America to the fourth. Worldwide, the company is ranked fourth, although that excludes Japan."

Prompted by Senator's Brownback's legislation, an interesting discussion is taking place on the ESRB, and gaming related politics. Next Generation offers up a damning look at the ESRB, wherein author Aaron Ruby says that the organization is 'incapable of effectively communicating with consumers, nor of fending off attacks from the industry's many critics.' At the Sony Online 'Station Blog', SOE's John Smedley retorts, saying that an industry-wide mentality is to blame for the ESRB's precarious position. Meanwhile, EGM's editor Shoe has some choice words on claims the organization shouldn't have to 'play through' every game that comes to market. From this last piece: "Sure, you usually can't see 100% of a game on an average playthrough. But I guarantee if you get three guys to sit down and finish every product, you can learn a lot more about what these games contain than from watching a bunch of highlight reels, which, remember, are edited by companies who have huge stakes in what the ratings turn out to be -- talk about conflict of interest!"

morpheus83 writes "Sony has decided to call the PS3's wireless controller 'Sixaxis' as it has sensors which allow it to sense linear motion along six axes. The Bluetooth controller charges when connected via the USB cable, after a full charge it is good for 30 hours of gaming. It becomes a wired controller when charging so you can continue playing." The Next Generation article also offers some further details on PS3 accessories: "Sony will also sell a memory card adapter used to upload data from PS or PS2 memory cards to the PS3 hard drive. That peripheral will go for 1500 yen ($13) and will be available at launch as well. A Blu-ray/DVD movie controller will also be in the accessory mix, selling for 3600 yen ($31)."

After a quite protracted struggle, Next Generation is reporting that EA has completed acquisition of Digital Illusions CE. From the article: "As part of the agreement, DICE CEO Patrick Söderlund will become an EA Studio general manager. Other DICE leaders will retain their roles in Stockholm. DICE and EA have had a tight working relationship over recent years. 'We've been working very closely with EA for the past five years and this is a very natural step for us as we move into the next generation of gaming,' said Söderlund. To complete the acquisition, EA acquired all of the assets and liabilities of DICE. Shareholders in the studio, which represent about 2.6 million shares, will receive SEK 67.50 ($9.23) per share in cash, which will be paid out on October 16."

Next Generation is reporting that Peter Moore has once again raised the concept of the 'Wii60', a gamer who has chosen to buy an Xbox 360 and a Wii, instead of ... that other guy's product. From the article: "In a canny piece of anti-Sony propaganda he said, 'Dual platform ownership of Xbox 360 and Wii could be as high as 40% depending on what territory we are talking about. The influence of the Wii-60 movement seems to be growing enormously.' ... But the mischievous Liverpudlian could not resist expressing some doubts about Nintendo's machine. 'The controller is innovative but it remains to be seen how innovative your shoulder will feel after an hour's play.'"

Next Generation reports that recent rumours about the exclusivity of Resident Evil 5 are incorrect. So says Capcom, anyway, trying clear up its relationship with Microsoft. The two companies have become increasingly 'friendly', with titles like Dead Rising and Lost Planet given the 360 some popular exclusive titles already. From the article: "'Just to be clear, this is a multiplatform simultaneous launch on PS3 and Xbox 360.' ... The status of Resident Evil 5 has been clouded in mystery over the past several months. The game was featured at Microsoft's X05 event and at E3 2005, but it didn't make an appearance at this year's E3 in May, or at Tokyo Game Show 2006 this month."

Next-Gen reports that Square Enix is throwing just the right amount of support behind Sony. In some fairly non-humble statements, Square Enix senior VP Michihiro Sasaki talked about their positioning in the next generation market. "'We don't want the PlayStation 3 to be the overwhelming loser, so we want to support them,' he said. 'But we don't want them to be the overwhelming winner either, so we can't support them too much.' Sasaki's comments (which were pulled out of context and dropped into the WSJ article) don't exactly take the humble approach regarding Square Enix's heavy influence on the popularity of the PlayStation brand. The PS2-exclusive FFXII sold over 1.7 million units for a premium $80 equivalent price tag in the first four days after its Japan launch."

Next Generation has a rundown on the 20 games they think defined TGS 2006. Leading the pack is Microsoft's double-barrel RPG action, Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon, their current great white hope for the Japanese market. From the article: "The weight of the bigger names involved -- artists Takehiko Inoue and Akira Toriyama, and writer Kiyoshi Shigematsu -- might even draw in completely uninitiated gamers. Blue Dragon, coming this year, as a pack-in with the console, will help make the machine a more familiar sight in homes that purchase PlayStation 2s for Dragon Quest; Lost Odyssey, coming next year, looks like something that could be advertised in cinemas." White Knight Story clocks in at number 3, and everyone from Ars Technica to Tycho is praising this Level 5 game as being the first PS3 title they're really getting excited about.

Next Generation reports on Microsoft's acceptance of responsibility for early 360 defects. While originally claiming that system failures were well within the norm for consumer electronics, they've now adopted a more service-friendly attitude. From the article: "Upon further investigation, it was further discovered that the bulk of the units were isolated to a group that was part of the initial manufacturing run of the console. Returns for repair are coming in for a variety reasons and it's a higher rate than we are satisfied with. We've made the decision to comp repairs for consoles manufactured before January 1, and provide refunds to the small group of customers who have already paid for repairs."

Next Generation has an article up looking at a report from SIG, on the correlation between game reviews and sales. Their findings indicate that, while reviews obviously do have some effect on games sold, there just isn't that much of a correlation. From the article: "He said he doubted that publishers and PRs would stop caring about review scores, especially as they matter a lot with consumers who compare games from the same sub-genre — say, basketball games. But he said that, as with last year's report, the report's findings are unlikely to be popular. 'We received a lot of attention but the stats do not lie,' he said."

Next Generation explores the possibility that the 18 to 34 year old 'hardcore' male gamer, a coveted demographic, may not actually exist. Research from the NPD Group indicates that most 'heavy use' gamers are younger, between six and 17. From the article: "Frazier explained ... 'The segments were determined by examining player behavior, rather than defining segments demographically. While it's easy to talk about the 18 to 34 core gamer, it's not necessarily accurate. The industry has been in need of much more nuanced information that can be used both when developing and marketing content. In all, 10 behavioral attributes were used to determine the segments, and they fall into four primary areas: ownership of systems, use of systems, frequency of use, and purchase behavior. Segments emerged by minimizing differences within clusters and maximizing differences between the clusters." Is this yet another sign of the 'greying gamer' phenomenon, or simply evidence indicating the marketers have had it wrong all along?

Next Generation reports on comments by Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime, stating that the Wii will be profitable out of the gate. It's been well-publicized that the consoles offered by Sony and Microsoft are subsidized by those companies. From the article: "Nintendo, however, has traditionally avoided the 'razor and blades' business model by selling its consoles above what they cost to make. Fils-Aime confirmed to Reuters that the Wii would carry on the tradition. 'We will make a profit on the entire Wii proposition out of the box -- hardware and software,' he said. 'That really is a very different philosophy versus our competitors. We are a company that competes only in the interactive entertainment space so we have to make a profit on every thing we do.'" The comment is undoubtedly meant to assuage analysts nervous about the relatively late release date and somewhat higher than expected price for the Wii.

The news came in late from Japan, with details on the North American launch. This morning, Nintendo's New York press conference expanded our understanding of what's going to be happening on November 19th. 1up has coverage of the event, as well as Japan's virtual console pricing, the opening lineup details for Japan, and news that the ex-FFXII director is excited about the Wii. Hopefully this will mean innovative support of the platform by Square/Enix. Over at Gamespot, they have their own conference coverage, as well as a rundown on the system's media functionality and first-hand comments from the engineers that built it. Finally, for a bit of analysis, Next Generation explores what the return of the pack-in (the inclusion of Wii Sports with the console) means for the industry at large.

Ground Glass writes "Next Generation has posted a list of the 100 most influential women in the games industry. It's an exhaustive and nonsense-free take on a subject particularly important to the male-dominated world of videogames. From the article: 'A gender-inclusive approach to game design and marketing of games may ensure that most, if not all, considerations to producing games for myriad markets are not overlooked. Games are no longer produced for a niche market of players; they are produced for complex, over-lapping layers of demographically, geographically, socially and culturally-influenced consumer groups.'"

Ground Glass writes "They already did this for consoles and handhelds, but now Next Generationhas finished the cycle by releasing a rather more interesting list of the best-selling PC games released since 2000. It's more interesting as, since most everyone has a Windows PC in some form or another, the games that are purchased for it are...rather more esoteric than you'd see being bought on console. You may also notice the sales numbers are quite a bit lower than on the other lists — is this the spectre of piracy given form? In any case, there's plenty of data to interpret here."

Ground Glass writes "They already did this for consoles and handhelds, but now Next Generationhas finished the cycle by releasing a rather more interesting list of the best-selling PC games released since 2000. It's more interesting as, since most everyone has a Windows PC in some form or another, the games that are purchased for it are...rather more esoteric than you'd see being bought on console. You may also notice the sales numbers are quite a bit lower than on the other lists — is this the spectre of piracy given form? In any case, there's plenty of data to interpret here."

Ground Glass writes "They already did this for consoles and handhelds, but now Next Generationhas finished the cycle by releasing a rather more interesting list of the best-selling PC games released since 2000. It's more interesting as, since most everyone has a Windows PC in some form or another, the games that are purchased for it are...rather more esoteric than you'd see being bought on console. You may also notice the sales numbers are quite a bit lower than on the other lists — is this the spectre of piracy given form? In any case, there's plenty of data to interpret here."

Next Generation is running an article penned by DFC Intelligence Analyst David Cole, exploring the overwhelming popularity of World of Warcraft. Coles asks Is It Possible to Surpass World of Warcraft? He explores the reasons behind WoW's success, and what it means for the market as a whole. From the article: "All of these factors point towards one conclusion: World of Warcraft's success, admirable as it may be, will be extremely difficult to duplicate. This will be bad news for all the frothy investors who are suddenly discovering the MMOG business model. In the new DFC Intelligence Online Game Market report we forecast revenue in the MMOG market to grow over 150% from 2006 to 2011. However, this doesn't account for all the investment money that is likely to be lost chasing after that revenue growth."

There was a lot of buzz this weekend about the possibility that EA would be buying Crytek, the company currently working on the uber-shiny Crysis PC game. IGN checked in with the mammoth publisher and, at least according to EA, there are no plans for Crytek to join the EA family. Crytek did have some news to share at the Leipzig Games Convention, though: Crysis won't be on the next-gen consoles. It's just too intensive for even the likes of the 360 or PS3, apparently.

Next Generation is reporting on the Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, with several interesting articles dealing with talks and events. Margaret Robertson (editor of Edge Magazine) discussed the reality of emotion in games, saying that emotion comes from players and not developers. Brain Training was honored with the Edge Award, beating out some tough competition. Finally, EA's worldwide studios executive VP and COO David Gardner had a keynote with seven predictions for the future, discussing the lack of female gamers and the possibilities that user-created content offer.

Next Generation is reporting on the Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, with several interesting articles dealing with talks and events. Margaret Robertson (editor of Edge Magazine) discussed the reality of emotion in games, saying that emotion comes from players and not developers. Brain Training was honored with the Edge Award, beating out some tough competition. Finally, EA's worldwide studios executive VP and COO David Gardner had a keynote with seven predictions for the future, discussing the lack of female gamers and the possibilities that user-created content offer.

Next Generation is reporting on the Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, with several interesting articles dealing with talks and events. Margaret Robertson (editor of Edge Magazine) discussed the reality of emotion in games, saying that emotion comes from players and not developers. Brain Training was honored with the Edge Award, beating out some tough competition. Finally, EA's worldwide studios executive VP and COO David Gardner had a keynote with seven predictions for the future, discussing the lack of female gamers and the possibilities that user-created content offer.

Next Generation is reporting that Gamestop has declined to take preorders for the Wii and PS3, on the grounds that they don't know how many units will be available at launch. They're apparently trying to avoid a repeat of last year's problems with the 360's launch. From the article: "Analysts also inquired what would happen if PS3 launch quantities fell short of expectations. '[Last year,] the 360 in short supply had an effect of freezing the market,' said DeMatteo. 'But if you look at it, there wasn't anything new. I mean, there weren't any new platforms out there, so the 360 was the newest thing in the last four or five years. This year, there will be a Wii and there will be a 360, so I can't believe that it will have the same kind of impact that the 360 [shortages] had.'"

Next Generation is reporting on numbers from the Consumer Electronics Association, who has projected that game shipments this year will top $12 Billion. With the launches of the Wii and PS3 expected by year's end, and continued brisk 360 sales, the organization expects a near-record breaking year. From the article: "The overall games industry appears to be rebounding quicker than expected, in the midst of the console transition. Combined software, hardware and accessory sales were up 29 percent year-over-year in July, according to the NPD Group. CEA's news release, which was only an excerpt of a complete report, didn't mention thriving handheld sales, most notably of the Nintendo DS, which drove hardware and software sales last month."

Next Generation is running an article looking at the design of the next-gen consoles. Article author Eric-Jon Rossel-Waugh argues that the new systems have lost their sense of identity, due to high monetary stakes and the need for consoles to 'say something' to the consumer. From the article: "In May, I finally saw a PlayStation 3 up-close - and dear lord. It looks like a space ship based on the template of a waffle iron. Whereas the Sega Genesis looked like you could top-load a CD into it, the PS3 looks like you could top-load a side of bacon. It was around this point that I realized, on the surface, none of the forthcoming-generation consoles really strikes me as a game machine. Building on the PS2, both Sony and Microsoft have chosen to outwardly craft their systems to resemble nothing so much as random hunks of pop electronics."

Ground Glass writes "Most top ten or top 100 lists are pure opinion, and thus a source of great debate as their objectivity is questioned by everyone with a personal favorite. Next Gen has chosen a different route — this is the top 100 games on PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Gamecube, calculated since the start of the decade by unit sales in America." As you'd expect, GTA, Halo, and Madden are in the top ten ... but did you know Smash Brothers Melee has sold 3.2 million units? Interesting stuff.

Ground Glass writes "Next Generation is reporting that E3 as we know it is finished. The games industry has lost its most glamorous show." Update: 07/30 21:18 GMT by Z : A reader wrote in with a link to an Ars Technica story saying that the event is to be downsized, not cancelled. From that article: "At the end of the day, the reason is very simple: ten years ago, you needed a big trade show to generate buzz and hype. It used to be that COMDEX was a special event because so much new stuff was unveiled, and this was the only way to see it. Now, however, information comes down the pipe faster than ever, and companies are wondering if there's really any benefit to spending the big money on displays only to share the floor with other competitors looking to out-wow attendees." I guess we'll see in a day or two what the future of E3 looks like.

Ground Glass writes "'Can games make you cry?' is a ridiculously simple question to ask about a hideously complex issue. Worse, it's possible that the very question itself muddies the answer. Next Generation's approach is a little more thoughtful; by figuring out what questions each medium tries to answer free of the art issue, it cuts to the heart of what games can do. With the tools made clear, it then theorizes what said tools can do emotionally." From the article: "In film, you can show a character staring at a point before him and then change perspective to show what he was staring at; it is the proximity and timing of the imagery that lends significance to the second shot. In painting, you can play with the two-dimensional space and qualities of the material at hand to create similarly suggestive juxtapositions of imagery, color, symbolism, perspective, lending greater insight into the workings of the medium, the subject at hand, the painter herself, and - ultimately - the viewer and his own perspective on the world around him."

Ground Glass writes "Does the traditional knowledge that 'history is written by the winners' hold true with consoles? Perhaps, but there's more to it than that. Sometimes, systems that fail do so because their most salient concept was one no one was ready for - these provide future 'innovations'. Sometimes their loudest message was one only a niche group would ever want to listen to - they provide much needed perspective. In an early medium, the failures are the ones questioning what a game should be. It's no wonder the winners keep writing their ideas back in."

Next Generation is reporting on more elements of the Xbox 360's presence in Japan. From the corporate side of things, the head of the Xbox division in Japan can be referred to as vaguely pessimistic. From the article: "Two RPGs from such a prolific fellow as Sakaguchi may strike a chord in Japan, but Microsoft will have to pull out even more tricks with the impending launch of the Wii and PS3, both of which Japan gamers favor over the Xbox brand. Right now, the Xbox 360 can't even make any headway sans next-gen competition. 'Globally we are doing very well but Japan has always been tough,' Huston admitted. 'We launched early and with not enough Japan-specific content.'" They're also running an article looking deeper into the situation, an examination from an outsider's perspective. From that article: "Mr. Huston has also commented that the 360 'launched early,' which is true in many senses of the word -- they launched before all their competitors, they launched early into the popularity of high-definition televisions in Japan, and they launched earlier than any good games. It was widely believed by Microsoft Japan that Dead or Alive 4 would save the system at launch, though really, how naive is that?"