Nintendo increases research budget !

Nintendo is to pump an extra 5 billion yen into advertising and research and development over the next financial year.[br]Usually trawling through Japanese business newspapers is about as enjoyable as stuffing broken glass down your pants and then taking a vinegar bath. The Nikkei Financial Daily, however, has come up with this little gem.[br][br]According to a report in the business publication, Nintendo's R&D budget will now come in at 22 billion yen. That's a 39 percent increase on last year and should ensure that the boffins will have plenty of cash to come up with crazy new game and hardware ideas.[br][br]The boost is directly related to the recent release of the DS in the US and Japan. Nintendo has sold over 2.8 million units so far and is eager to ensure the handheld is stocked with new software that exploits its innovative gaming features. [br][br]It's also likely that Nintendo's next-gen home console, currently labelled Revolution and expected to be ready for release into 2006, will swallow up some of the cash. Indeed, Nintendo's energetic vice president of sales and marketing last week talked about how Revolution will offer even more gaming innovation than the DS. We can't even begin to imagine what Nintendo's got up its sleeves, but we should find out at May's E3.[br][br]The increase in advertising budget is expected to cover the costs of Nintendo's high profile DS advertising.[br][br]It's encouraging to see that Nintendo, which already has a proven track record of changing the ways we look at and play games, is committed to researching new ideas and ensuring that loads of new games are available. We'll have to wait and see whether this approach is successful in the long-term, or whether Sony's and Microsoft's more traditionally 'straight' approach to gaming will win out.