Seems Sony have started to advertise the PS3 in NYC, check out the shots via comments. ...

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) scooped 5 BAFTA British Academy Video Games Awards to become the most successful software developer at an event held in London last night.

LocoRoco (Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio) picked up two awards for best Children’s game and best Character while Shadow of the Colossus (Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio) also picked up a double for best Action and Adventure and Artistic Achievement. BUZZ! – The BIG Quiz (SCEE/Relentless Software) was awarded top honours for best Casual and Social game.

"On behalf of the development teams who worked so hard to push the limits of creativity and innovation, I’d like to thank the members of the Academy for recognising these titles. It’s a great honour and inspiration to our entire development organisation,” said Phil Harrison, President, Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios.

In total SCEE had eight titles and a total of 20 nominations across 13 of the 17 categories.

The British Academy of Film and Television (BAFTA) is the United Kingdom’s leading organisation dedicated to the recognition and promotion of excellence in the fields of the moving image. The BAFTA British Academy Video Games Awards recognise artistic, creative and technical innovation within all aspects of the video games industry and are now poised to be the global benchmark for excellence in video games. 2006 is the debut year for the awards. ...

The Nintendo DS Browser went on sale across Europe today, letting users access the Internet as well as play games. The browser, which is made by Opera Software, has been available in Japan since July. No US release plans have yet been announced.

The browser is on a DS cartridge, which once attached lets users connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi at any of Nintendo's 6,000 free Wi-Fi Connection hot spots and other public-access hot spots. There are two separate software packages--one for the original DS and one for the DS Lite--because of hardware differences. Each will only work on their specific console.

Any Web page should be viewable on the DS, according to Berit Framnes, public relations officer for Opera Software, who said, "There are no sites that you can't access. However, it does not support Flash, so you will be unable to view Flash animations or videos."

Users can choose from two different viewing modes--the faster is a fit-to-width mode that's similar to Opera's browser for mobile phones. This shows Web pages in a single column across both screens. Alternatively, surfers can choose DS mode, which shows an overview of the page on the lower screen with a magnified image of the selected part of the page displayed on the upper screen.

The browser also makes use of the touch screen by showing a virtual keyboard on the lower screen to make typing in URLs and e-mails faster than text messaging.

"It's so people can access the Web on the go. We see people using this in the library or waiting at the airport. It's a cheaper alternative than a mobile phone because the Nintendo Wi-Fi points are free," Framnes explained.

When asked if there were any plans for a US or Australian version, Framnes said, "Nintendo haven't released that information, but we're just as keen as everyone else for it to happen. I think it's just a matter of getting all the hot spots set up and a partner to provide a proxy filter so parents can block content."

Buy DS Browser (£24.99) ...

When the Xbox 360 went on sale last November, it was instantly beset with supply problems. Many consumers who preordered the consoles months in advance couldn't obtain a console until the following year. Even then, many early adopters were forced to settle for a hard drive-less "Core" 360 or found their units beset with a higher-than average rate of hardware problems.

The PlayStation 3 looks like it will suffer similar supply issues when it hits US stores next month. After being delayed from its spring debut, the console also saw its initial shipment drastically slashed from 2 million day-one units worldwide to just 500,000--100,000 for Japan's November 11 launch and 400,000 for North America's November 17 launch. Though the PS3 has been delayed in Europe until March 2007, Sony still asserts it will ship 2 to 2.4 million units of the console by 11:59 p.m. on December 31.

By Sony's own account, the primary reason for its PS3 woes is the console's optical disc drive. Sony is experiencing difficulty manufacturing the laser diodes for the drives, which will use Blu-ray Discs. The next-generation video format is squaring off against rival HD-DVD, which is not-so-coincidentally supported by Microsoft.

However, unlike Sony, Microsoft decided not to incorporate a cutting-edge disc format in the Xbox 360, which will get an optional external $199 HD-DVD drive later this year. Nintendo went even one step further. Its Wii console won't even support DVD playback, and its graphical and processing power are roughly only twice that of its current-generation console, the GameCube.

Now, Nintendo's emphasis on simplicity and proven technology is apparently paying off. According to a report from UBS Investment Research, the Kyoto, Japan-based game giant is not only meeting its manufacturing goals, but it is surpassing them.

Citing industry "checks," UBS analysts Alex Gauna and Steven Chin claim that Nintendo already made 2 million Wiis by the end of September. They go on to predict that, "at least 7 million and potentially as high as 9 million more units are in the build plan for Q4 06. This production ramp handily exceeds a publicly announced target for 6 million units to ship by year's end." (Emphasis added.) If 2 million Wiis are already made, that could being the manufacturing total to a whopping 9-11 million units, although they all would not likely ship by year's end. [CORRECTION: GameSpot initially reported overall production of Wiis for 2007 would be 7-9 million. We regret the error.]

Besides being music to Nintendo fans' ears, the report should also hearten shareholders of the Broadcom Corporation, which makes the wireless integrated circuits in the next-gen console. Broadcom supplies "one Wi-Fi and two Bluetooth ICs [Integrated Circuits] into each packaged Wii, with the potential to enjoy additional Bluetooth sales from additional controllers." ...

Via Gamespot

A new pair of Pokémon titles--dubbed Diamond and Pearl--hit Japan on September 28, creating huge lines and waits of up to five hours in Tokyo, as fans mobbed the stores. Today's weekly software ranking from Media Create underscores the immensity of the Pokémon effect on Japan's game market.

According to Media Create's figures, in their first week, these two games moved 1,588,734 copies combined--820,047 for Diamond and 768,687 for Pearl. To put this in perspective, sales of the other eight top games combined came to 429,008 units, or a skosh over half of Diamond's sales.

This huge injection of Pokémon purchases boosted weekly top 100 software sales to 219.29 percent of the weekly average. Although on the high end, Media Create notes that Diamond and Pearl's sales figures are par for the course. January 2004's Fire Red and Leaf Green also did well their first week, selling 517,874 and 495,245 copies respectively. Emerald also did rather well, moving 790,527 units during its debut week.

In other news, the PlayStation 2 saw its slice of the top-10 pie dwindle, with just three games making the grade. The latest .hack title moved 122,800 copies to land at third place and Minna no Tennis, last week's top game, scored another 68,755 sales, allowing it to ace New Super Mario Bros.

The PS2's only other offering, coming in at number nine, was Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms 11. This game marries classical Chinese story of the Han Dynasty with strategic and role-playing elements, and the franchise has long been a staple of both strategy and history buffs throughout Asia.

Japan Game Sales Week of September 25-October 1, 2006

1 Pokemon Diamond
Platform: DS
2 Pokemon Pearl
Platform: DS
3 .hack//G.U. Vol. 2
Platform: PS2
4 Minna no Tennis
Platform: PS2
5 New Super Mario Bros.
Platform: DS
6 Zaidan Houjin Nippon Kanji Nouryoku Kentei Kyoukai Kounin: KanKen DS
Platform: DS
7 Kahashima Ryuuta Kyouju Kanshuu: Motto Nou o Kitaeru Otona DS Training
Platform: DS
8 Final Fantasy III
Platform: DS
9 Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI
Platform: PS2
10 Animal Crossing: Wild World
Platform: DS ...

Via Slashdot

Retrogaming with Racketboy has up a feature looking at some of the 'holy grails' of console collecting. These are titles worthy of long, hard searches through auctions and used game stores ... both for their quality and their rarity. From the article:
"16. Star Fox: Super Weekend/Donkey Kong Country Competition Cartridge, Estimated Price (Loose): $200. If there was a big one-two punch in Nintendo's fight against Sega's Genesis, Star Fox and Donkey Kong Country would be it. While the main retail games may not be rare at all, there was a special package that is quite desirable. The Star Fox: Super Weekend and Donkey Kong Country Competition cartridges were used by Blockbuster Video in tournaments held within the store, and never received a true commercial release. The winners of the tournaments would receive prizes such as jackets and sometimes even vacations."

Full and excellent article Here ...

New Xbox360 game released:



In Tenchu Senran you get to create your own pair of ninjas. You can choose from a number of male and female faces and outfits, as well as adjust statistics to build a character that will suit you best. The game also includes new ruthless techniques and an increased number of stealth kills.

More Info --> http://www.yesasia.com/?/info.php?pro...8&lsaid=219793 ...

Via pspfanboy


Scans Here ...

Via Siliconera

A few weeks ago, Nippon Ichi announced that they’d be porting Disgaea, their most popular title, to the PSP. While an American release is still up in the air, Nippon Ichi has stated they’ll probably be adding some additional content to the re-release. Unfortunately, they haven’t revealed any concrete bonuses.

More at the link above ...