Opera Software has confirmed that its internet browser will be free for users of Nintendo's Wii console until the end of June 2007.

The browser will be available to download for free from the Wii Shop Channel as a temporary promotion.

From July, users will be required to purchase Opera using Wii points - Nintendo's credit system for the new home console - although a price has not yet been set.

As well as including functions of the Opera 9 Desktop browser such as bookmarks and zoom, it will support Flash and AJAX-based content, and be customised to the Wii and its remote controller.

Opera already works closely with Nintendo, supplying the browser for the DS, which is due to launch in Europe on October 6th. ...

With PlayStation 3 looming, its performance so far has hardly been auspicious - but Xbox Japan boss Takashi Sensui believes that Microsoft's efforts with 360 in the Far East will finally come to fruition this holiday.

While the bulk of media and consumer attention at last week's Tokyo Game Show was focused on an overwhelmed Sony stand, Sensui insisted that his struggling platform was finally receiving the content to match the value proposition to turn around Microsoft's fortunes in a territory which has thus far largely shrugged at a console the West has embraced.

"Japanese consumers are somewhat reluctant to take in new brands, particularly if the brand has come from outside Japan," Sensui told GamesIndustry.biz in an exclusive interview during last week's event.

"We've been here for several years now and we've launched a new campaign this summer for 360. The response has been very positive – people now feel they're very close to 360, that it's more relevant to their lives and particularly for gamers that Xbox 360 is the best platform there is."

Key to Microsoft's optimism this holiday is a triumvirate of 360-exclusive titles, spearheaded by Mistwalker's hotly-tipped RPG Blue Dragon and including Capcom's Lost Planet and Tecmo's Dead Or Alive Xtreme 2.

"Japanese consumers have a different taste in gaming. This holiday we have a great line-up that will answer those demands; I think it's going to be a great time for us going forwards," Sensui insisted. "I think we have a great variety of titles with great depth and some of the key titles necessary for the Japanese market."

The RPG genre, in particular, has proved a major obstacle to the US firm's ambitions in a territory where the mainly PlayStation-loyal Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises dominate consumer interest.

Blue Dragon, although a brand new title, is a project from original Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi's Mistwalker Studio, seized upon by Microsoft as proof that it is honouring its commitment to woo Japanese gamers with apposite content.

Sensui continued: "The important thing is the balance of the portfolio. We need those established franchises to answer the needs of the consumers but at the same time we need new content."

A clear run as the only next-gen system in the market has failed to drive anywhere near the volume of unit sales of 360 Microsoft will have been hoping for to date in Japan. And the threat posed by the November 11th PlayStation 3 launch was increased last week by Sony, with SCE president Ken Kuturagi announcing a surprise and aggressive 20 per cent price cut for the 20Gb PS3 model, down to 49,980 Yen (EUR 337)

But Sensui rejected suggestions that this piles further pressure on the 37,900 Yen Xbox 360 (EUR 255) and the forthcoming Core model, due to be released in November at 29,800 Yen (EUR 200).

"We believe that what we offer in terms of the content and the value of the system and the pricing of the console both on the standard console as well as the Core system that we're introducing for the first time in November, provides the best balance of value and price and I think [our proposition] really is the best value for money going into the holiday," he said.

And while the Xbox Japan boss refused to provide an estimate of the 360 installed base in Japan by year-end, he moved to distance Microsoft from a direct fight with its rivals, pointing to the opportunities of a an expanding sector: "Well, as you very well know, I'm not allowed to say any specific number for the country," he explained.

"At least with these three consoles in the market this holiday [360, PS3 and Wii], the market itself in Japan will expand and we have a great chance of taking a good share in that market."

But with analysts suggesting that 360 has so far sold well under 200,000 units in Japan, compared with the 2.4m units shifted in the US alone by the end of August, it is clear that Microsoft's system must now show a dramatic leap in performance over the holiday period if it is to improve its status in the territory ...

New Xbox360 game release:



An arcade shooter designed exclusively for Xbox 360, Project Sylpheed is an arcade-style, science-fiction-based space shooter in development by Game Arts packed with drama and science fiction themes.

More info --> http://www.yesasia.com/?/info.php?pro...1&lsaid=219793 ...

New PS2 game released



Kowloon Youma Gakuen Ki re:charge is an adventure game which mixes elements of RPG. Despite the title, the game takes place in Shinjuku, Tokyo's Kamiyoshi high school in 2004. The protagonist, an exchange student, who doubles as a treasure hunter, hears of an ancient treasure resting well hidden in the deepest areas of a ruin buried underneath the school building. He eventually discovers the entrance to the underground labyrinth on a graveyard located in one corner of the school's campus and the adventure begins. This re:charge version can be compared to Shin Megami Tensei's maniax edition and features new dungeons and an extended scenario.

More info --> http://www.yesasia.com/?/info.php?pro...0&lsaid=219793 ...

New PS2 Release:



Newest installment in the Sangokushi game series. For the first time in the series, this episode features full 3D maps as well as a detailled overlook on the battlefield.

More info --> http://www.yesasia.com/?/info.php?pro...7&lsaid=219793 ...

New PS2 Game release:



Quartett! The stage of Love is a port of a PC love simulation that's set in a classical music school called Magnolia. Taking control of student Phill Junhers, who was scouted to be a student at Magnolia, players must interact with a group of girls over a two month period and attempt to make it to concert-level performance. The game employs a so-called Floating Frame Director system which brings character visuals to life with over a hundred graphical patterns that make use of thousands of frames. Princess Soft has improved upon the PC version with full voice.

More info --> http://www.yesasia.com/?/info.php?pro...0&lsaid=219793 ...

RedOctane has announced that it is bringing Guitar Hero II to Xbox 360, bringing to an end several weeks worth of slightly boring rumours in the process, and will offer downloadable content too. Excellently.

An early glimpse of the game and the, er, "X-Plorer controller" will be seen at X06, and actually we know the bloke who's demoing it and he says it's "ace".

No word on when it's due out, obviously, but we do have some excitable-sounding quotes:

"The tour will continue the rockin' gameplay Guitar Hero fans have come to enjoy, and will now include expanded Xbox 360 capabilities," according to RedOctane president Kai Huang. Who sounds pretty hip.

Well, I think that sells the console pretty much single-handedly. Sony: it's SO OVER.
"With Guitar Hero II for Xbox 360 rock rhythm, lead, or bass guitar tracks with downloadable content and the new X-Plorer controller, designed specifically for the Xbox 360."

Woo! Yeah!

"With its large integrated hard drive, Xbox 360 provides an incredible platform for facilitating downloadable content," says excellently-named new pal of the website Dusty Welch, head of RedOctane's publishing.

"We believe there is no better title to feature micro-transactions than a music game like Guitar Hero II, where the content is the basis of your experience. The relationship with the Xbox Live Marketplace creates endless possibilities for exclusive content." ...

Although presumably we'll have to wait a little while for the full impact of X06's Live Marketplace offerings to be made apparent, one particular bit-crater over which the dust has settled contains a demo of SEGA's new Sonic the Hedgehog title.

Shown off on both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 at the Tokyo Game Show last week, and previewed and everything, the new title sees Sonic and a few of his friends (including the blasted Tails) taking on Sonic Adventure-style levels, which mix insane speed and puzzle-solving.

New characters include Silver the Hedgehog, who can use telekinesis to manipulate things, which is great for solving puzzles/showing off SEGA's newfound love for real-time physics. ...

When the rumor mill gets a'turnin' you're bound to have a few false-starts, and it seems the new black Xbox 360 meme is no exception. The snazzy "black Xbox" seen above might look quite black and Xboxy, but we're sorry to report that it's just a developer box, plenty of which have been out since before launch for testing out pre-release games. Also, if when Microsoft does actually build a black version, we're kind of hoping they stick with that chrome drive tray from the regular 360, and maybe go with a truer black instead of this piddling smoke color. We're definitely not writing off the rumor entirely, according to some "leaked info" from Microsoft's planned X06 announcements this week, they'll be announcing Xbox 360 Black for the holidays, along with 1080p Halo3 and other fanboy pleasers. We also got a tip from somebody who claims to have a friend at GAME that says the black Xbox 360 will be a premium only color, and might even come with an integrated or bundled HD DVD drive and possibly a larger HDD. We suppose we'll know soon enough -- X06 is over tomorrow -- but that doesn't mean we can't stay busy drumming up the hype and unrealistic expectations until then. ...