Nintendo Wii priced and dated
Nintendo's next-gen console Wii will go on sale in the United States on Nov. 19 for $249.99, the gaming giant announced last week. The system will be bundled with "Wii Sports," a package that incorporates the controller's innovative motion technology into golf, tennis, baseball, bowling and boxing.
Nintendo said 25 games will be available at launch, including new "Zelda" and "Metroid" titles. By the end of the year, 30 will be available for the Wii, and 4 million units of hardware will ship worldwide.
First-party games will sell for $50. Gamers will also be able to download classic NES, SNES and N64 games for $5-10 each.
Nintendo also announced several of the Wii's multimedia capabilities. Besides the DVD playback that's now standard in video game consoles, the Wii will let users surf the web, read the news, check the weather and send messages to each other.
Less Stations to Play
Sony cut launch numbers for its PlayStation 3, further feeding the fire of PS3 doubters. Sony said there will now be 500,000 units available on day one, down from the 2 million the electronics company initially projected. 400,000 of those will be stateside on Nov. 17. The other 100,000 will be in Japan on Nov. 11. Europe, Australia and the rest of the world will not get the PS3 until March of 2007. Sony said 2 to 2.4 million units will be available by the end of 2006.
Sony also revealed that although the PS3 supports high-definition display, HD cords will not be included with the system and must be purchased separately.
Many gamers had already been skeptical of the PlayStation 3 launch due to the price of the system. The complete version will go on sale in the United States for $599.99. Nintendo's next console, the Wii, will sell for $249.99. Microsoft is currently selling its Xbox 360, which launched last year and includes an HD cable, for $399.99.
Schilling Starts Game Company
Red Sox ace Curt Schilling stepped out of the baseball diamond last week to form his own video game company. Green Monster Games, named for the giant left-field wall in Fenway Park, will focus on massively multiplayer online titles.
Schilling is not the only star in the company. "Spawn" creator and ex-Spider-Man artist Todd McFarlane has signed as Green Monster's art director, while fantasy writer R.A. Salvatore will serve as creative director.
"The challenge is not simply in publishing a game but in publishing a game that changes the landscape of the online marketplace," said Schilling, a long-time fan of the "Everquest" MMORPG series.
"Our company motto is 'If you can't do it better than it's ever been done before, work for someone else,'" he said.
The company's first game is in pre-production. No details about its content or release have yet been announced.
