Baitohel 2000

Sony are really asking for it, this was no coincidence.

Baitohel 2000 is an outcoming 1st party PSP title, which was shown at the Tokyo Game Show a few weeks ago, and releasing in December of 2005. Apparantly some characters vaguely resembling Nintendo mascots are part of the game.

Not much about the game is known, except that the gameplay is VERY similar to Warioware. Small minigames with low resolution? WITH retarded looking Nintendo characters?

Here is a link to the video preview of the game:
http://www.playstation.jp/ch/pv/asx/tgs2005/pv_p_bh2000.asx

More info:
http://www.nintendogal.com/index.php?/archives/152-I-Smell-Lawsuit.html

And the official site:
http://www.playstation.jp/scej/title/bh2000/

Here are some screenshots of game footage, they really get on my nerves...





Btw, thanks Vavorb for providing this info :).

The Lynx Effect

After seeing the Micro's performance on its launch in Japan (selling over 170,000 units in a single week), do you think the tiny console, along with the DS, is sufficient to take down the PSP? Although the DS, by itself is already selling about 3x as much as Sony's first handheld, the PSP is still maintaining quite a healthy share of the console market at 20% last week. So do you believe, that due to having competition offering more affordable and portable handheld systems (SP, DS, Micro), the PSP will soon suffer what I may call, "the Lynx effect"?

Hehe, sorry about the lame joke but I've been wanting to use it in a blog post for a while. Here's another: What is the difference between a PSP and poop? Well, one's waste, a stench and a pile of sh33t, and the other is poop (:D).

Anyway, here is a visual representation of the GB Micro's latest performance in Japan:



As you'll notice, the PSP has performed unusually well this week, at only 1% under the DS's sales. It was due to the release of a new colour (white) and two new games: Winning Eleven and FF: Advent Children. The GB Micro sold exactly 170,306 units, the DS maintained its average at 72,167 units, and the PS2 has dropped to 4th place in sales, for the first time ever if I recall correctly.

Iwata's G4 Interview

G4 has posted an interview conducted with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, here is a link:

http://www.g4tv.com/mediaplayer/index.aspx?video_key=9569

I have just finished watching the interview, there isn't anything new revealed about the Revolution and its controller, but the video is worth its 50Mb or so download. Iwata covers questions concerning the Revolution's power and controller add-ons (though he dodges questions regarding the console's price and release date), and also some info on the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the Gamecube.

He brings some good points on Nintendo's decisions with the Revolution, including why the company has decided not to include high definition with the console. He believes that for non gamers, people who don't have a care for video games who are attracted by the Revolution's unique style of game play, aren't going to care if the system isn't as "graphical" as its competition. Also for the 80% of consumers not owning a HD TV, supporting High Definition would add uneccessary cost to the Revolution console.

Rumoured Specs

These are the set of Revolution specs that have been floating around the internet for the past few days. Supposedly leaked by Factor 5 employee "Hans Solo", the specs outline the Revolution's performances in terms of power and graphics.

Central Processing Unit:
Custom IBM CPU "Broadway"
1x IBM PowerPC 970 core @ 3.0 GHz
256 kB L1 cache
Single core and multicore operation modes
2x IBM PowerPC 970FX cores @ 2.5 GHz
2x 128 kB L1 cache
Optional activation for multicore
Low power consumption
1 MB L2 cache
32-bit integer, 64-bit floating point
Two threads per core, six threads total
11 billion dot product operations/second (peak)

Graphics Processing Unit:
Custom ATI GPU "Hollywood"
Dual customized ATI R520 cores @ 500 MHz
ATI "Crossfire" dual core technology
10 MB embedded EDRAM
2x 128 MB GDDR4 graphics memory @ 1.25 GHz
50 GB/second texture bandwith (peak)
Next-gen hardware prestations
2048x1536 maximum resolution (DVI)
1920x1080 maximum resolution (1080i)
650 million triangles/second (peak)
100 million polygons/second (expected performance)
112 million shader operations/second (peak)
56 million shader operations/second (expected performance)

Physics Processing Unit:
Custom AGEIA PPU
Customized AGEIA PhysX PPU @ 400 MHz
Hardware physics acceleration
32 MB PC3200 DDR SDRAM physics memory @ 400 MHz
Sound Processing Unit:
Custom NEC Sound DSP
Custom NEC digital signal processor
256 simultaneous channels
196 KHz maximum sample rate
Sound ADPCM encoding
Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby DTS support
16 MB embedded SRAM sound memory

Memory:
512 MB 1T-SRAM @ 900 MHz main memory
No memory read delay
10 MB EDRAM @ 500 MHz embedded video memory
2x 128 MB GDDR4 @ 1.25 GHz graphics memory
32 MB PC3200 DDR SDRAM @ 400 MHz physics memory
16 MB SRAM sound memory
Total of 826 MB RAM

Miscellaneous system data:
1.2 billion floating point operations/second (peak)
65 nm manufacturing process
Liquid metal cooling
65x better heat conduction than water
No fans or pumps involved
Media:
Custom Panasonic 12 cm discs
12 GB data storage
CD/DVD support
Supports DVD-9, DVD-5, DVD-ROM, DVD+/-R, DVD+/-RW, Audio DVD, SVCD, VCD and audio CD.
16x DVD speed, 21.6 MBit/second data transfer

Data storage:
4 MB embedded EDROM (system utilities)
512 MB embedded Flash ROM (data storage)
2x SecureDigital memory card slot
64 Mbit/second read speed (peak)
16 Mbit/second write speed (peak)
Supports up to 16 GB per slot
2x Nintendo GameCube Memory Card slots
4 Mbit/second read speed (peak)
2 Mbit/second write speed (peak)

Networking:
802.11g compliant network chip
54 Mbit/second data transfer (peak)
Backward compatible with 802.11b protocol
Compatible with any 802.11g / 802.11b router, as well as the Nintendo PC Access Point and Nintendo DS
150 ft range (peak)
50 ft range (expected inhouse performance)

These specs have been considered fake, but it is interesting to read nevertheless.

Small In Size, Big On Sales

The Game Boy Micro launched in Japan over a week ago, and the newest sales statistics are rolling in. When I first heard about the Micro (at e3 2005), I'd initially thought Nintendo were releasing what you may call a "side" console, simply a newer model of the GBA to top off its handheld sales. But after reading its launch performance in Japan, it has become obvious that the Micro intended to have a market of its own.

Spong has reported that the iPod Mini sized console sold a crazy 148,000 units to Japanese gamers in its first week of release. Here is a link to the article.

The sales numbers for the latest week (7 days, not 6) of Japanese hardware sales are below:

GBM 170,306
DS 72,167
PSP 70,152
PS2 24,396
GBASP 11,147
GC 1,882
GBA 624
Xbox 109

You may notice that the PSP has performed quite well this week. Usually it sells less than half of the DS, but it has only sold 2,000 units less this week. This was due to a major game release, Winning eleven. But what is REALLY suprising, is that the GB Micro managed a whopping 170,000 units in a WEEK (actually, more). It has outsold the PSP, DS, PS2, and basically everything else combined.

Who would have thought, that a console weaker than its competition, inferior in terms of power, graphics and screen size, could sell so well? I certainly didn't, but nevertheless, this is great news for the Nintendo fans, Nintendo (last week) managed to hold approximately 78% of the handheld market.

Btw, thanks Praxis for providing the stats :). Please check out Digital Share forums, there is a link on the right of this page, thanks.

Nintendo, Return Of the King?

It is obvious that Nintendo already ARE king on the gaming market, as they are holding the largest proportion of the market share with the GBA, SP, DS, Micro and Gamecube all grabbing sales. But will their next generation console, still called Revolution, help Big N maintain dominance in the home market too?

Apparantly Nintendo of Europe's senior director of marketing Jim Merrick seems to think so. In a recent interview with Games Industry, Merrick claims that the Revolution has the potential to help Nintendo regain dominance in the home gaming market. Here is a link to the article:
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=11606

Notice the following quotes:

Jim Merrick, has revealed that he believes the Revolution controller "Certainly could make us market leader."

"We have formidable competitors and I'm not going to make any sweeping, grand statements, but the Revolution has the potential to appeal to new groups of consumers we've previously been unable to reach."

Merrick said Nintendo expects its rivals to be inspired by the new controller: "Here we are, about to throw away 20 years of controller designs - designs which Nintendo came up with. There will be an influence on the industry, absolutely."

"That said, Nintendo will aggressively protect its intellectual property," he continued.

He also responded to critics who have expressed concerns about the controller working with different television standards by saying: "It works with LCDs, plasma screens, projectors... Everything. I guarantee it."

Nintendo had taken the decision not to show any games at TGS as they wanted the audience to focus on the new controller, and not get "hung up on polygon counts and so on."

Merrick did say: "Put it this way. Without making a commitment, if I went to E3 2006 and didn't end up playing the Revolution, I'd be very disappointed."

"Let's just say we have more surprises in store," he said.

When Will This Happen?



This is just a simple mockup of a Sony controller, posted by a member at Digital Share (check links). I guess it was intended as a joke, but I believe something similar WILL happen in the future. There is no doubt, maybe if not by Sony then Microsoft, that Nintendo's newest ideas will be copied. This was the reason why they were so secretive about the Revolution. At least for this round, it will be difficult for Sony/MS to incorporate gyroscopic features into their own controllers.

This has always been the case. Sony has always copied Nintendo's ideas. First it was Nintendo's design of a CD console, then a control stick, followed by a rumble pak. All Nintendo's ideas, stolen. Sony has never been bright enough to come up with their own innovations. Their best achievement was probably the i Toy, which is amusing, but nothing to push the gaming industry forward.

So basically, and ironically, Sony needs Nintendo. Without Nintendo, their gaming division wouldn't EXIST.

PSP In Australia

Well, the system has been selling, or not selling to be precise, for the past 3 weeks here in Australia, and the first set of sales statistics are rolling in. Here is the first article I came across regarding PSP sales down under:

Please click here

Almost 40,000 Sony PSP"s have been sold in Australia in the past 2 weeks. Launched late last month the PSP is set to be a "Must Have" this Xmas.

Sony Computer Entertainment Australia has almost met an ambitious target of selling 40,000 PlayStation Portable handheld games machines within two weeks of the devices' local release, with sales monitoring agency GfK Marketing confirming yesterday that some 34,172 units were sold in the 14 days to September 11, 2005.

Some 20,000 units were pre-ordered before the Australian launch on September 1. According to SCE's Adrian Christie, "a few"customers did not pick up their pre-ordered units, but the launch had nevertheless been more successful than any other gaming device launch in recent years. The 34,172 confirmed sales represent retail-level revenue of more than $13.3 million, within sight of the forecast $16 million.They cast some doubt, however on SCE Australia's forecast of 250,000 sales worth $100 million by Christmas, aided by a $5 million promotional blitz (CDN Aug. 11).

Sony badly wants the PSP to outsell Apple's iPod in Australia this Christmas, after the iPod stole No 1 retail spot from Sony last year.

One rival the PSP won't have to face at Christmas is Microsoft's new Xbox 360 console. Microsoft yesterday confirmed that it would not be launched in Australia until 2006, despite announcing a November 22 date for the UK release and December 2 for Europe. The PSP will still face new competition at the lower end before Christmas, with Nintendo launching its $179 dual-screen DS handheld on September 22, and the $150 Game Boy Micro on November 3.

Undeterred, Sony is looking to 330-380,000 PSP unit sales in Australia by the end of March. The company claims the PSP is much more than a games machine, since it can also play music, show photos and full-length Hollywood movies.

The PSP weighs 280 grams, has a 4.3-inch wide-screen high-res display, built-in stereo speakers and 32 megs of main memory.

Should be a great little stocking stuffer.

Now, obviously this article was written by another clueless Sony fanboy. And as usual, it is time for me to cut him down.

"Sony Computer Entertainment Australia has almost met an ambitious target of selling 40,000 PlayStation Portable handheld games machines within two weeks of the devices' local release"

Notice. ALMOST. In other words they FAILED to meet their sales target.

"sales monitoring agency GfK Marketing confirming yesterday that some 34,172 units were sold in the 14 days to September 11, 2005"

I have no idea where they got 14 days from, the PSP was released on september the 1st. And a little over 34 thousand units a FAR off 40,000. Using the term ALMOST to describe these sales is plain sad.

"a few customers did not pick up their pre-ordered units, but the launch had nevertheless been more successful than any other gaming device launch in recent years"

A FEW, as in over 7,000 people, according to other sources. A FEW people have brains as well. And what is this about being the most sucessful gaming device in recent years? The Nintendo DS broke all records to become the fastest selling console EVER in Australia. In the first weekend of release, that is, 3 days including friday, the DS sold a STAGGERING 19,100 units. Check sources for proof, or ask me for a link. Now lets compare the numbers.
DS: Almost 20,000 in 3 days
PSP: 34,000 in 14 days
enough said.

"Sony badly wants the PSP to outsell Apple's iPod in Australia this Christmas, after the iPod stole No 1 retail spot from Sony last year"

STOLE? Since when did Sony own the electronics market? And that being the case, then Sony STOLE Nintendo's ideas, Sony STOLE Nintendo's market, Sony STOLE Nintendo's fans. Can't you take some of your own medicine for once, Ken? Or is it so bad that you have to tell bullcrap to the media to make it sound like your little PSP is selling better than it actually is?

It seems to me that Nintendo and Apple have reached an unspoken agreement to team up against Sony's PSP. Nintendo are lowering the price, bringing out kick as titles for the DS, and releasing a Gameboy Micro in Novmeber. Apple are launching their iPod Nano, which is as slim as a pencil, has a colour screen and plays photos, and only costs a tad more than a Mini. For music and photos, the iPod will pwn PSP. And for games and movies, we have the DS and Micro (with Play Yan Micro or Movie Player). PSP is in it, deep.

"One rival the PSP won't have to face at Christmas is Microsoft's new Xbox 360 console. Microsoft yesterday confirmed that it would not be launched in Australia until 2006"

Well enjoy the time you have, Sony, because by the start of next year, you will have the 360, Gamecube, Xbox, Micro, Mini, Nano, GBA SP, DS and original iPod whipping your behind. These will be your last days.

"with Nintendo launching its $179 dual-screen DS handheld on September 22, and the $150 Game Boy Micro on November 3"

OMG this guy must have been sleeping for the past year.
The DS was released on February 24th, it will only be having a $20 pricedrop on the 22nd of September. And the GB Micro will be release on November the 2nd, they are about to take pre-orders at EB.

"The company claims the PSP is much more than a games machine, since it can also play music, show photos and full-length Hollywood movies"

"The company"? My god Sony is desperate, they must think the public are idiots. Then DS will be MUCH MORE than a gaming machine too, since it can play movies, music, e-books, photos, fc games, watch TV with tuner, player homebrew GBA and DS applications, voip, Wi-Fi, run Linux, and even a GPS system is in development. So Sony, what do you have to say to that?

"Should be a great little stocking stuffer"

Should be would be could be but isn't. Well, unless you take the other interpretation of "stocking stuffer".

Sorry for making this a long post, I just love cutting down Sony fanboys :P. If anyone knows a Sony fanboy who pays out Nintendo, please, give me his email :).

Big N Strike

Well I'm sure you've all seen the controller by now, but in case you haven't, here it is.



If this is the first time you've seen the controller, I'm sure you'll have doubts on Nintendo. But think of the possibilities with this stylish remote. Here are its features:

- 3D Pointing. Sensors understand up, down, left, right, forward and backward.
- Tilt Sensitive. Controller can be rotated or rolled from side-to-side.
- Buttons Included. Has a trigger on its backside, face buttons, and a D-Pad.
- Multifunctional. Has an expansion port which can be used with different types of controller
peripherals.
- Analog stick with two trigger buttons planned for left hand.
- Wireless. Totally wire-free. Currently there are no details on the max distance, source or power, or otherwise.
- Rumble Built-in. Included as a standard in all the controllers.

This means that the controller can detect its distance from the TV screen. With inbuilt gyroscopic features, it senses roll and tilt movement too. So I guess now every single leaker (eg Aries, King Dea, Serious gamer, Osoko Tanaka) must be in hiding now, cause they were ALL fake...

Instead of typing up more controller information, here are a list of useful links to controller resources. If you've seen every link on this list, you'll know all there is (revealed) on the Revolution controller.

IGN hands on the controller
What developers think of the controller
Short video demoing the features
Controller at glance, more pics and info
Revolution brand gone?
IGN comments on controller
Iwata's complete keynote video
Possibilities with using the controller
Gamespot Editors on controller
Nintendo Insider on controller
Try out the controller yourself
Translated video of speech

THIS IS IT

Three and a half hours left until Iwata starts his 50 minute TGS speech, this is it. All of the speculation, controller mock ups, fake serious gamer style leakers, photoshopped screenshots of games, the whole point of the N-game, has finally paid off. After a year of Revolution discussion and on gaming forums across the net, it's finally coming. Nintendo finally feels that the "time is right".

Gaming resources have made thir written their final article, leakers have posted their last speculation. Serious gamer 007 posts a controller that is already proven fake.

A million N-gamers around the world will be at their computer screens, flicking through cube.ign.com and Gamespot for the first signs of a controller. Right now, the media should be heading towards the TGS for the kick off. President Satoru Iwata is probably memorising his speech at this moment. The Revolution controller could already be there, hidden under the covers.

This will be the turning point for Nintendo's hype, their marketing scheme of doing nothing.

Talking about timing. Falefakid's not the only one who is going to miss the keynote speech, I am having exams until 4 hours after the speech ends. Hopefully, when I return to post, your hungers for information is answered. It has turned form anxiety to excitement. Hopefully by then, the media, the public, and the Sony and Microsoft officials will view Nintendo differently, more of a threat than nuisance.

Because they will have seen the Revolution.

"When you see it, you will be excited, because you will experience a gaming Revolution"
GO SATORU!!!

Another IGN TGS Article

Link to the full article:
http://cube.ign.com/articles/650/650737p1.html

Basically, here IGN are speculating on what the Nintendo President will reveal on the Revolution during his 50 minute speech at the Tokyo Game Show. There isn't much news on the controller, except that IGN claims it will "come up" during the speech. A tech demo, ingame footage, a list of specs or even a release date and price are unlikely to be announced though.

Nintendo did promise to reveal every detail regarding the Revolution by the end of this year, IMHO the TGS is the perfect place to unveil after e3. There they will be able to capture the most attention from the media.

But sadly, the Tokyo Game Show is unknown to most gamers who live in the United States, Europe or Australia. I still believe that it was a mistake for Nintendo to miss unveiling the Revolution at this years e3. but perhaps it is better this way, Nintendo are still going by their "trojan horse" marketing.

Off topic, just last week a Sony fanboy came up to me and asked if I was going to purchase a PS3. When I replied with "Heck No" - (polite version of what I said :D), he told me that Nintendo weren't producing a next generation console, lol. Boy, will he be suprised when I am playing Smash Bros online using the Revolutionary controller, and he is still saving up for a PS3 :D.

T minus 2, the Revolution is coming...
Iwata: "When you see it, you will be excited, because you will experience a gaming revolution".

Movies On GameBoy Micro



Nintendo has announced that it will release a new adapter for the Game Boy Micro. Tentatively named Play-Yan Micro, the adapter will let the handhelds play back MP4 video and MP3 audio files from SD memory cards.

Though it will only be released for Japan at this time, I am being hopeful of a release in the States, then later Australia. The GB Micro's clear bright screen should make it perfect for viewing movies, though there is the drawback of the 2 inch size. The console's small iPod Mini size should also make a great mp3 player.



As you can see, the Micro produces a much sharper and brighter image than the GBA SP. Below are more pictures of the Micro and new Play-Yan.

Revolution at the TGS

First it was spong, then gamecube cafe, aussie-nintendo, cvg and softpedia announced a controller appearance at the TGS. But it wasn't until I came across the update IGN FAQ that had me convinced. IGN's updated revolution FAQ, has some news on the TGS in page 3 (wasn't easy to spot):

Q: When will Nintendo reveal more about Revolution?

A: At the Tokyo Game Show 2005. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata will talk about Revolution in his keynote speech. Nintendo fans must not miss this event for it is here that Iwata is expected to unveil the Revolution's mysterious controller. The keynote will take place in mid-September and IGN will be on hand with details and photos.

Also new on the IGN FAQ, they are speculating the Revolution to cost under $200 (US) at release! That is quite amazing, as I don't recall a home console ever coming close to that price at release.

Q: How much will Revolution cost?

A:: An exact price is unknown. But Nintendo is aggressively seeking to deliver a small, quiet and affordable console. It seems likely that the unit will debut at the sub-$200 mark and possibly cheaper if all goes as planned.

If this news is true (and IGN usually are), many people who usually don't have the money for console games will be able to purchase a Revolution. Also, others who are buying a 360 or a PS3 may have money left over. Perhaps the price will be revealed during Iwata's TGS speech. Or we'll see some in game footage, or the secret behind the Revolutionary controller. either way, be sure not to miss it. There is a timer at the top of falefakid's blog (nintendo-revolution.blogspot.com). for peeps living in Sydney, the 50 minute speech will begin at noon on the 16th.

History Of Handhelds

I've been doing some reading on some random forums over the net, and found that, suprisingly, many people believed that the Sony PSP was the first compeition Nintendo ever received in the portable market. So I decided to write a brief history of past console wars, and all those who have fallen to the hands of the legendary Game Boy.

The original Gameboy was released in 1986 (lol, two years before I was born), and Nintendo IMMEDIATELY received competition. The Atari handheld, Lynx, was released in the same year. I'm sure you all know the specs of the Gameboy (aka nothing but a 2" screen which could produce 4 tones), but here are the Lynx's specs. It was the first handheld to have a colour screen, it also supported a backlight like the GBA SP and could produce GBA quality graphics. It could flip upside down for left handed gamers, and also connect to Atari's home console, the Janguar. It competed against the chunky Game Boy, and got HAMMERED.

I'm not sure how Nintendo did it. They hadn't officially become the king of consoles back then, and the best titles on the Game Boy were Super Mario Land, and Tetris. But I guess it was due to the Lynx's expensive price, production shortages, lack of quality games and bad battery life (sound familiar?). Even despite a new design of the console in 1991, the Lynx never sold well.

The next bit of competition Nintendo received was in 1990, when Nintendo's home system rival Sega, released the Game Gear. It had a colour and backlit screen, and Sega quickly produced many popular titles like Sonic shortly after release. The Game Gear did better in sales compared to the Lynx, but also lost to the Game Boy by a huge margin.

Several other attempts to compete with the Game Boy were released, such as the NEC TurboExpress, Supervision, Wonderswan, and Neo Geo Pocket. Despite the clear technological superiority of almost all of these handheld consoles, especially by the mid-1990s, none were ever a serious threat to the Game Boy's sales. In simpler terms, they all received their share of Yamauchi whipping :).

Basically, after all the pwnage shown by Nintendo, competing companies realised they could not compete with the Game Boy, even by producing superior handhelds to fight for sales. It was not until 2003, when the GBA SP dominated the handheld industry, when Sony decided they were stupid enough for another attempt, and thus produced the PSP. Nintendo saw Sony as the biggest threat, and quickly began production of their own console to rival Sonys. Instead of Multimedia, Nintendo wanted functionality. Instead of power, Nintendo wanted innovation. Instead of graphics, Nintendo wanted game play. The console they develeoped was first shown at e3 2004, by president Satoru Iwata. Nintendo called it their "Developer's System", or "NDS" for short.

Gyroscopes For Revolution Confirmed

Well, basically anyway. This is old news, but I've found that many people still haven't read the article on the agreement between Nintendo and Gyration, made in 2001. Looking at the gamer's speculation poll at IGN, more people thought the Revolution would have "nothing" than gyroscopic control.

Nintendo made an agreement with Gyration in 2001 to purchase an amount of their stock. The agreement was made around the same time as the Gamecube release. Here is a link to the article:
http://www.gyration.com/intl/uk/pr-nintendo_uk.htm

From the article:

Gyration intends to be the first company to produce game controllers enhanced with gyroscopic motion-sensors, which have a tenfold performance increase over accelerometer tilt sensors and add the ability to sense yaw as well as pitch. A gyro-equipped, motion-sensing controller provides a natural method of game control that draws the player into the game and makes game play more enjoyable. The motion sensor can take the place of a typical thumb pressure pad allowing one-handed game play, or can be integrated into a two-handed controller to add a dimension to game playing not possible with traditional game controllers.

The Legendary Handheld

In the United States last month, the Nintendo DS sold about 100,000 units. Sadly this was much less than the 167,000 sold by the PSP, despite the releases of Advance Wars: Dual Strike, and Nintendogs. But what is really suprising, is that the GBA SP, even without any special game releases, OUTSOLD BOTH THE DS AND PSP at approximately 180,000 units.

The legendary Game Boy, the console which dominated the portable game industry for 20 years, is still kicking it today. Despite having a very powerful console on one hand, and a very innovative console on the other, the GBA SP still comes out on top. If I recall correctly, there has NEVER been a handheld that sold as well as the Gameboy in the same time. The Atari handheld, the Sega Gamegear, the Bandai Wonderswan, the Nokia N-gage etc, all couldn't even compare to the amount of popularity the Game Boy received.

So how long can the Game Boy rule the market? At least for another few years, if Nintendo continues to create cool apps like the Play-Yan, and the rumours of a Game Boy Evolution in development are true.

Sales statistics for the following months should be interesting, as more killer titles for the DS are released, including Wi-Fi enabled games such as Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and Metroid Hunters. The Game Boy Micro will launch in the States on September 19th, so we should also see an increase in GB sales. And the GBA SP will continue to sell, combining sales with the DS and Micro, I am sure Nintendo can easily maintain its current domination over the handheld gaming market.

IGN bought By News Corp

But firstly, let me correct a mistake I made in the previous post. The media claims that the PSP sold twice as much as the Nintendo DS did in its launch period in the UK. Note: ITS launch period. The PSP's launch period was for the first 4 days of its release. The Nintendo DS's launch period went for 2 days. This means that the PSP only sold at about the same rate as the DS over the first 2 days of launch. Once again Sony tries to gain popular by tricking the media with false/misleading information, now many people believe the PSP is twice as popular as the DS in UK. Well, if a Sony fanboy comes up to you and brags about this, correct them ;)!

On to the news. The article below is taken straight from IGN, not written by me.

September 8, 2005 - You may not have noticed, but today we all put on our Ultra Force Helmets and pulled out the really fancy Diet Dr. Pepper: Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation is set to purchase IGN Entertainment for an estimated $650 million in cash. Yes, we're big. Oops, we're bigger!
The deal will make IGN and its many properties -- including IGN.com, GameSpy, FilePlanet, Rotten Tomatoes, and TeamXbox, to name several -- a part of News Corporation's Fox Interactive Media division. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the year.Why News Corporation? The company is eager to expand its presence online, because Internet media is genuinely hot these days. Why IGN? Because when it comes to games and entertainment online, we're hotter than hot.For those wondering why this is significant, consider that News Corporation is the parent company of, among others, 20th Century Fox, Fox Television, Fox News, DirecTV, TV Guide, HarperCollins, the New York Post, and Intermix, the owners of MySpace.com.What does it all mean? While higher-ups at both companies are working out all the details, it's business as usual here at IGN.com. To be honest, now that the tingling's gone, we feel and smell the same. We can't say for sure yet, but given the resources at News Corporation, readers should find IGN getting bigger and better, while remaining independent, loveable, entertainment-crazy IGN.

IT'S WAR

According to the UK market analysts Chart-Track, 185,000 PlayStation Portable handheld consoles in the UK have been sold in the past weekend. The PSP was launched on the 1st of September for the United Kingdom, and (I'm sorry to say) has sold very well. It has even broken the fastest selling console record, set by the Nintendo DS back in March.

I posted this to be fairer to Sony after all the paying out I've done in previous posts. And here is what I have to say to it.

Sony are fooling gamers. People do not realise what a pathetic console the PSP really is. But however this false image has given Sony a clear advantage in scabbing market sales, and if this continues, they may even have a chance at dominating the handheld market. Of course that won't be the case anytime soon, as the DS and GBA SP are still selling strongly, but now I'm seeing the PSP as more of a threat than a nuisance again.

Nintendo can still secure their dominance, the GB Micro will be released in 2 months, in a week for Japan and the United States. This time Nintendo are smarter. They will be releasing a version of the Play - Yan especially designed for the Micro (named Play-Yan Micro, coincidently). The PYM will be released in the States as well as Japan, unlike the original Play-Yan that was Japan only. For those who don't know, the PY is a device for the GBASP/DS to watch movies and play music. Watching movies on the Micro's 2 inch screen may not be so great for your eyes, but for music it's a great idea. Many people love playing music on multi-functional devices.



Remember that the sales statistics are for the UK, Australian stats have not been released yet. But when they are, I'm sure we'll see the PSP to being less popular in Australia. Also remember that the DS broke all current records for the fastest selling console in Australia and the UK. The PSP broke that record, now we shall see if it has done the same in Australia.

Nintendo, Sony have struck! Now is the time to be aggressive! Deploy the Micro! With Play - Yan available at launch! Lower the $149 pricetag! You cannot allow Sony to get away with this!

Lol, ok I need to calm down, but it is true. Nintendo have reigned king of the handheld market for over two decades. Though Ninty has killed off other handhelds like ATari, Gamegear, Wonderswan etcc, Sony is the toughest competition yet. It will take more than the DS to finish the PSP off, the GBA SP is also selling well, and the GB Micro will join the fight in November. All Nintendo needs to do is release some killer apps for the SP and Micro, and some cool utilities for the DS, such as a GPS system (which exists but isn't official).

One last reminder for all the PSP fanboys who've read this post and am now feeling rather smug about the news: CURRENTLY THE DS IS OUTSELLING THE PSP BY 4 TIMES IN JAPAN. IT IS ACTUALLY OUTSELLING PSP AND PS2 COMBINED SO THERE!

Mario Kart Arcade GP
Source: IGN

(This is an IGN article, not written by me).

"September 1, 2005 - IGN's pick for most enjoyable game of JAMMA would have to go to Mario Kart Arcade Grand Prix, Namco's arcade adaptation of the hit Nintendo franchise. Arcade GP was originally shown at the AOU arcade show earlier this year, but JAMMA gave us an opportunity to get in a few extra rounds with the game and grab some quality video footage.
Arcade GP features many of your favorite characters from the Mario world, including the likes of Mario, Peach, Koopa and Wario, and adds a few Namco originals like Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man and the Pac-Man red ghost. These characters fit in perfectly with the Mario cast. Pac-Man has been given a whiney little voice which he uses to shout out as you race.In the JAMMA demo version of the game, we were able to select from two modes: Grand Prix and Time Attack. Grand Prix is split into six cups: Mario Cup, Donkey Kong Cup, Wario Cup, Pac-Man Cup and a secret cup that requires unlocking. Each cup features four races, making for a total of 24 courses.
Once you've gotten out to the race track, you'll find a different experience from the GameCube Mario Kart, as the partner-based play of that title is nowhere to be found. Still, looking at the basics, Arcade GP has classic Mario Kart gameplay, along with what feels like a shot of speed over previous titles. Also, in Arcade GP, when you bump into an opponent, your character will play dirty by punching away. Everyone was much nicer in the original SNES title.
The big change, of course, comes from having a steering wheel setup. We can report that Mario Kart controls so well through a steering wheel that going back to a controller may be hard once you've experienced it this way. Namco has even replicated the series' trademark jumping play mechanics, allowing you to make your kart take short leaps by tapping the brake while accelerating.
Items are as big in this title as they've always been. Once you've picked up an item, you finalize your selection by tapping a button square center on steering wheel. This button lights up blue when you have an item in stock and is also used to shoot the item. Your character automatically locks on to the nearest opponent, meaning you won't be relying on red turtle shells as much this time (in fact, we were unable to even pick up a red turtle shell as we played -- maybe they're gone)."

Reality Check
DS VERSES PSP PART 10

Firstly, I'd just like to announce that this is the 50th post I've made for this N-gamers blog. Thanks to everyone who's paid a visit, I will keep this blog running until the Revolution is fully unveiled.

The most recent sales statistics from Japan show a slight decline I DS sales, mainly due to the end of the rush for Jump Superstars. This week, even Work Your Brain for the Nintendo DS sold high than Shogen Jump' anime style smash bros game. Here is a chart from nintendoinsider.com for the latest hardware figures:



You'll notice that the DS dropped from 51% to 48% of total sales. This is normal as most people who wished to buy Jump Superstars would have purchased a DS already. Nintendo fans do not need to worry. From above, Nintendo is still holding a strong 60% of total market share, and in the U.S, Nintendogs is helping the DS outsell the PSP, and the GBA SP helps widen the gap. Also, the GB Micro will be released later this month for Japan and the States. Nintendo will gain even more of the market, the PSP will be pushed to a corner of handheld sales.

Since the PSP has been released for a few days now in Australia, I shall continue posting other Nintendo news, the 10 part DS verses PSP ends here. I hope I have been convincing enough :).

Sony Loses PSP Stronghold
DS VERSES PSP PART 9

Thanks to the release of Nintendogs in the U.S, the Nintendo DS more than doubled in sales, and comfortably outsold the PSP last week. Now The PSP is being OUTSOLD BY THE DS IN EVERY COUNTRY, and the GBA/SP is still selling well. The boost in DS sales may also be due to new DS colours, and the attractive new price of $129. The GB Micro will launch in a few weeks for the Americans, and it is safe to say that I no longer consider the PSP as a threat, but now a minor nuisance to Nintendo. When the killer apps are release for the DS here in Australia, you Sony fanboys will finally realise the truth. The article below is from Nintendo Insider, written by Johnathan Coley:

"Nintendogs: Over 250,000 Sold

REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- With sales of a quarter of a million units in its first week of availability, Nintendogs(TM) is not only America's hottest selling video game, but the best-selling new game franchise ever for a portable system.

Retailers already are reporting that Nintendogs, made exclusively for the hand-held Nintendo DS(TM), has sold out in numerous locations across the country, and Nintendo will deliver more shipments as soon as possible. The three versions of Nintendogs and the DS unit itself consistently rank at the top of Amazon.com's best-selling list of all video game products.

"Nearly 15 percent of all DS owners bought Nintendogs in just a week, a virtually unprecedented adoption rate for any title on an established system," said Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing. "And it's also helping sell new DS hardware. Coupled with a price drop to $129.99, retailers are reporting DS sales up between one and a half and three times previous levels, and last week DS comfortably outsold our portable competitors."

Nintendogs lets owners train and care for lifelike puppies using the DS system's touch screen and microphone. It became a cultural phenomenon in Japan and launched in the United States on Aug. 22.

People who like traditional hard-core video games have plenty to enjoy as well. Retailers also report that the new Advance Wars(R): Dual Strike military strategy game for Nintendo DS has become one of Nintendo's top sellers."

Closing The Gap On PSP
DS VERSES PSP PART 8

Nintendo UK decided to release some boastful figures about the DS today, by mysterious coincidence also the day the PSP arrives in Europe and Australia. This news, after reading about DS sales in Australia, did not surprise me much at all. Here is a link to the page:
http://www.cube-europe.com/news.php?nid=8190

Notice this on the page:

"In the UK, the Nintendo DS broke records for the biggest ever opening in a launch weekend, selling 87,000 units in two days – that's an average of one Nintendo DS sold every two seconds!"

The Nintendo DS became the fastest selling console ever in Australia, and now it has done the same in the UK. On average one console sold every 2 seconds, for two days and two nights non-stop. Amazing what Nintendo, a supposedly dying company, making kiddie consoles and games, can do. Isn't it? Nintendo never stepped down from the title of "King of Consoles", they simply concentrated on the portable market instead. Sony fanboys will never believe this, of course, most of them (surprisingly) still believe the PSP is selling well. Many also believe the PS2 is more powerful than the Gamecube, and PS1 more powerful than the N64. If you're one of these people, well here's some news.

Processor wise, the N64 was THREE TIMES AS POWERFUL AS THE PS1. The N64 had a 100 Mhz processor, PS1's was 33 MHz, closer to the power of the SNES. Compare the graphics of the PS1 to the graphics the N64 is capable of producing, they look a whole generation apart. the PS2 is about half as powerful as the Nintendo Gamecube. Its processor is half the speed, and in terms of graphics, it could only produce 7 million polygons, while Gamecube can do 15 million. Actually the Gamecube isn't far off the Xbox's power, the Xbox culd produce 17 million. And although the Xbox's processor is twice that of Gamecube's (and 4x PS2), the Gamecube could sitll produce Xbox quality graphics, with an exception with some shadings.

But unlike Nintendo, who have been making a profit with every Gamecube, Microsoft loses about $200 on every Xbox sold. In the last four months they have lost over HALF A BILLION U.S DOLLARS on the Xbox. Microsoft are dumping the console, hoping to gain in the long run. Whereas Nintendo has been making profit on the consoles, accessories and games for decades. Though Microsoft can never be killed if they continueously dump their systems, seeing as they're so darn rich :), I'm sure they'll eventually cease selling if the Xbox/360 continues to lose profits.

Back to Sony. Simply, they are even more screwed than Microsoft (in the gaming market). They have been making less profit than Nintendo, and unlike Microsoft, they cannot afford to sell their consoles for a loss. Their first attempt (on their own) at a home console was pathetic, I mean by price, size and shape of console/controllers etc. Microsoft relised their mistake, they create a system smaller in size than the Xbox. Nintendo have realised their mistake, they plan to release before PS3. Sony have become over confident after PS2, they will surely be the ones to suffer this coming generation. But Sony fanboys will never realise. They will never accept the fact that their beloved console originated from a SNES. They will never accept the fact that DS is selling 4 times faster than the PSP. Oh well, too bad for them.

I seem to have gone off the DS verses PSP topic here, I'll give it a rest for now. But stay tuned for more PSP bashing soon :).