Despite friction with trade infringement and discounting on game releases, Microsoft's winning streak for 2007 seems to be keeping strong as the computer technology corporation tops MCV's 2007 Retail Survey - helmed by Halo 3 and the Xbox 360.

More details on Microsoft's achievement after the jump.

Followers of major electronic and gaming events take heed: the activities for the upcoming 2008 International CES (Consumer Electronics Show) are finally announced, and there's a lot of stuff in store for gadget aficionados and gamers alike.

The 2008 International CES will put the latest gaming technology in the spotlight, with major gaming exhibitors such as Commodore Gaming, Entropia Universe, Red Lion Interactive, Shuttle Computers and War Machine as participants.

The gaming-related CES events are as follows: CES Game Power Conference Partner Program; Sandbox Summit, where people can experience the latest gaming gear, toys, and products; CES Mobile Entertainment Partner Program, where breakthroughs in mobile gaming and technology are featured.

For general electronics consumers there's the Home and Lifestyle Entertainment Knowledge Track, where visitors are given a peek of whats to come in the future of gaming as well as the possibilities of 3D home theater.

Finally, close followers of the current format wars should be interested in the Blu-ray Disc TechZone and the HD DVD TechZone, where the features of each of the leading high definition formats are tackled.

The 2008 International CES will be held in Las Vegas on January 7-10. Bill Gates will deliver the opening keynote address for the event on January 6.

 

The E3 Trade Show has been the gaming industry's most revered gathering since it started way back in 1995. The traditional format was a series of larger than life events for everyone to drool over. For most people, this setup was one that worked well, but industry insiders may have been thinking otherwise all along.

In July 31, 2006, E3 organizers announced that the marquee event would be reconstructed and a new format was revealed in October 13 of the same year. What we witnessed in E3 2007 was a sleeker, harder to access, less hectic, and more professional E3 Business and Media Summit.That's not to say that there was anything wrong with the new model. It may not be as flamboyant as it was before, but all the big announcements along with spectacular sights and sounds were there, and that's good enough for most of us.

Taking a look back now at everything that transpired in the few days of gaming heaven, we saw some amazing stuff coming from the three big players of this generation's console cycle. Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo Company Ltd. all had their chance to deliver their pieces, and what we got was a nice mix of corporate and strategic mindsets reflected in the content and manner that the three dished out.

Let's take them one at a time. Just click on the Full Article and read on.

Forbes Asia revealed its list of 40 richest Japanese for the June 18 issue, and numbers show that former Nintendo chairman Hiroshi Yamauchi jumped up a few spots to third place.

Yamauchi's net worth of US$ 4.8 billion doesn't come close to Bill Gates' US$ 56 billion, but the increase in his riches mean something for Nintendo. Thanks to the massive success the Wii and DS are experiencing, Ninty shares have tripled since January 2006. After dominating sales charts across the world, and almost catching up with the 360 even with earlier release advantage, it's no suprise that the greens are rolling.

From a company that used to sell hanafuda cards and run love hotels, Nintendo sure have gone big with the gaming industry. The only guys that topped Yamauchi were Mori Trust (real estate corporation) CEO Akira Mori who came in at first and Softbank (a telecommunications corporation) CEO Masayoshi Son at second place.

Inter-piñata breeding is apparently loved and approved of by our mommies and daddies. That's right kiddies. Viva Piñata just won this year's top Parents' Choice Award. We've also heard Bill Gates approve of Rare Ltd.'s piñata gardenry game as well, so maybe some other parents follow suit.

If you're curious, other titles which also won the hearts of parents were Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam (Wii and DS), Backyard Basketball 2007, and Animal Genius. From the looks of things though, Parents' Choice Awards are given to those games that feature... animals ("animals" here, would be ana-morphically defined loosely though). Remember last year's award-winner? Animal Crossing: Wild World bagged the top award, and now we have Piñata.

Anyone want to guess next year's winner?

In this round of the console wars, people always say that the main rivals are Sony with their PS3, and Microsoft with the Xbox 360. But of course, the two are now neck-to-neck in terms of hardware, graphics, online service, and other features. Nintendo comes in as a viable alternative, a dark horse if you will. This is undeniable especially when Nintendo has always been open about their stance in this round - to go with gameplay experience and not focus on graphics. However, Microsoft's boss of the bosses Bill Gates maintain that Nintendo is not just an alternative.

According to him, "The strength of Nintendo on the portable space has been very impressive and surprised a lot of people; and the strength of the Wii; and we see Nintendo as the toughest competition," as he commented when he was interviewed recently by TV Tokyo.

Quite recently, Nintendo raised its financial forecast for fiscal year ending on March 31 to 966 billion Yen. That's roughly around US$ 8.1 billion and it can attributed to the strong performance of DS and Wii, both in hardware and software sales. We wonder where does Sony fit in all these?

We know you had a blast (from the past) when we ran a feature about turning classic 80s cartoons into next-gen videogames, so we thought "why not do a 180 and focus on what lies ahead this time?" So this time we'll try to go crazy (in the process, be as absurd as possible) and try to peek into the kind of videogames our grand, grand, grandchildren would play in the far future.

We know that videogaming evolves depending on the kind of technology the current generation has. Whether it's a top of the line cell, motion-sensing technology, or an oober rich gameplay, current crop of consoles and games will try to equip themselves with the most technologically advanced weapons (yeah, kinda like "real" wars).

Since our list is supposed to be played during the future, don't be surprised with its absurdity. Even Edison and Einstein were laughed at by their peers during their time. We can't play videogames without platforms, so we've pulled out some out of this world (or time) ideas and created our own versions of future consoles. We'll stick with the big three this time - Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony. Here they are:

Xbox Revolution: Nope, they did not rip off Wii's former name. It's 50+ years into the future and I doubt if anybody would still remember that Nintendo used it as a WIP name for one of their consoles. Why "Revolution"? Well Microsoft followed 360 with 720, then 1440, and then...let's just say they got tired with spinning figures they christened their console of the future with a name that "revolutionizes" rotation (and an excuse to get rid of all those numbers). Main feature: Nerve sensitive controllers enabling the owner to make commands with the power of thought. Bonus perk: Comes with complementary infobot/condom dispenser (part of Bill Gates mission to stop AIDS).

PlayStation 3: Yeah, Sony will stick to the name PS3 because it is the future. In the far future they've stopped relaunching completely new consoles and have just resorted to periodical hardware and system updates. Main Feature: Interactive Body Teleporter: Technology immersing the player to actual in-game participation (gamer gets warped inside the game). Bonus perk: 20% off the next hardware or system update, which should be in a month.

Nintendo YeePee: It turns out the "Wii" is Nintendo's sublime way of sending the "our console is fun" message (hence the name's "weee!" sound). And their most recent console's name, descendant of Nintendo "Yey" and "Hura", follows the same trend. Main feature: Strap-on technology, the console works like a mobile suit, giving the gamer the ultimate motion sensing experience. Bonus perk: Party hats and balloons, and a couple of pots and pans.

Getting trippy already? Get a load of titles for the future by clicking on the "full article" link below.

The DICE Summit is just getting warmed up. After Phil Harrison's interview, which some received with raised eyebrows, it's Reggie Fils-Aime turn to talk about, what else, the Wii and the DS. The Mercury News was able to interview NOA's chief operating officer at DICE and he has some very interesting things to say.

First off, he mentions that the new data on sales for their hardware and software products will be out next week. But with or without data, he is confident that the Wii is one hot commodity. He said that two thirds of the software sales were by third parties so "developers are sharing in the success." He is also very confident that the Wii would surpass the installed base of the Xbox 360, if this type of sales rate continue.

Now, NPD found out that the top selling console last December was the six-year-old PS2. When asked about his opinion on the PS2, he mentions that the PS2 is not a direct competition of the Wii. Then he was reminded that Bill Gates said that the Wii isn't a direct competition of the Xbox 360, here's what he said about that:

When you're as rich as Bill is, you can say anything...They have done some things that are brilliant at Microsoft. We want to bring gaming back to the masses. Consumers are voting with their wallets and pocketbooks.

As for those who are saying that the gameplay of the Wii is limited and its style of playing is just a novelty, he rebutted by saying that these detractors have probably never seen Zelda - a game which is blessed with 90 hours of gameplay. As for the controversies about the Wii (like the hold your wee contest), he says that the death of the contestant is an unfortunate scenario.

As for the DS, he disclosed that it has sold more than 35.6 million units now and that they "are making millions a month, but the demand is above that."

To read more about the interview, click on our read-link below.

While the Wii sells out like Granny's blueberry muffins, the PS3 is still pretty easy to locate in stores. Although Nintendo is exceeding one million units shipped per year, the Wii is hard to find in outlets elsewhere. Even with Sony's downplay of the Wii being an "impulse buy", nothing can shake the truth that the Wii is simply outselling all at the moment.

Even while the biggest companies in the game console industry thought that the living room gamer is looking for die-hard graphics and power, the average couch potato thought it was about time to get up and get a movin'. This is probably the best explanation to the Wii's success.

Nintendo pulled a big risk, but by approaching the competition "sideways" it managed to reel in a huge following of players who just wanted to be more involved in the game than be enthralled by a game. Tracy Ciardiello, a 28 year-old stay-at-home mother laughed when a message popped up on the TV screen saying, "Why not take a rest?"

"You're up and you're moving, and it makes you feel more involved," she said.

Both the Wii and the PS3 are up against the Xbox 360, and ol' Bill Gates sees the Wii as it's toughest competitor. Even with the Wii's amazing success, it's still too early to tell the winner of the next-gen console wars.

It looks like another research group is predicting the possibilities of consoles as one-stop shops for more than just games. A new study from ABI Research indicates that as more people grow accustomed to the online nature of their consoles, the amount budgeted towards gaming will veer more towards online transactions.

If this sounds a lot like what Bill Gates was talking about during the World Economic Forum, then you're right. The prediction here is connected to the convergence of different forms of tech and micropayments.

Of the three console manufacturers, Microsoft is the one ABI gives the lead to though, as a result of Xbox Live's current prominence in gaming circles. Still, ABI asserts that the battle will still be on, as Nintendo carries with it a ton of first-party content through the virtual console and Sony has the high attach rate resulting from their PlayStation legacy.

The question is: how are we really going to pay for it though?