Nintendo talks future at conference:
Nintendo's next console, codenamed "Revolution," will be backward-compatible with the GameCube and will feature wireless Internet access, said company President Satoru Iwata at this year's Game Developers Conference. Iwata also announced that Nintendo will launch a free wireless Internet service for its latest handheld. IBM is designing the Revolution's processor, while ATI is creating the system's graphic chipset. The Revolution has no set release date but will be unveiled to the public at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in May. The handheld Internet service will launch later this year.
Microsoft reveals new Xbox 2 details:
J. Allard, a chief architect of Microsoft, said the next Xbox will boast one teraflop of targeted computing performance and has been in development for years by more than 1,000 engineers. Allard also discussed the system's new user interface, the "Xbox Guide," which sounds like a juiced-up Xbox Live, the current system's online service. Gamers will be able to buy items for their games including new cars for racing games, virtual tattoos and more. Allard also said all games for the new Xbox will feature customizable soundtracks. The new Xbox will be shown for the first time at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in May.
Buena Vista joins growing list of movie companies supporting PSP:
Disney's Buena Vista said it would release movies on Sony's new handheld gaming system, the PlayStation Portable, in Universal Media Disc format. The first four movies will be "National Treasure," "Pirates of the Caribbean," "Kill Bill Vol. 1" and "Hero." The UMD movies will go on sale shortly after the PSP's release this week. Buena Vista is the latest movie company to announce support for the PSP. Sony will release many of its own films in the UMD format, while Lion's Gate Entertainment became the first outside studio to pledge support earlier this month.
Nokia to drop price of struggling N-Gage:
Nokia lowered the price of its cell phone/gaming system combination N-Gage QD and its games Thursday. The QD will drop from $199 to $99, while the games will sell for $10 to $20 cheaper than the original $34.99 price tag. After two years and the release of an improved version, sales of the N-Gage have not met company expectations.
"Warcraft" world a hit for millions in real world:
Blizzard Entertainment, developer of the popular "Warcraft" computer series, said its online game "World of Warcraft" has surpassed 1.5 million active subscribers. The game has also had 500,000 players around the world logged on concurrently. However, the large number of players has in the past led to server downtime and technical issues, resulting in fan criticism. "World of Warcraft" was released in November for the PC and Mac.
Namco gets new president:
Namco, creator of "Pac-Man," is celebrating its 50th anniversary by bringing in a new company president, Shigeichi Ishimura, current head of Namco's mobile division. Former President Kyushiro Takagi will become vice chairman. According to a Namco statement, the moves were made to freshen the company's position in the current marketplace.
-ADAM BENDER
