And Michael Pachter's at it once more. What's he got to say this time around? This is the last console generation. Oh, I thought there was gonna be another one, especially after the debut of CryEngine 3 and it being next-gen ready. But am no analyst, so I could be wrong.

There are now 11 countries that have an annual video game revenue in excess of US$ 1 billion. By 2009, the video game market is expected to reach a whopping US$ 57 billion. Leading the charge are the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 3, and the Wii. Analyst David Cole of DFC Intelligence speaks his peace on the current generation of consoles. Which is the most profitable platform for 2007? The answer is a doozy. Make a guess, and find out after the "read more" link.

It's been a while since we've heard some strong words said on the subject of the console war. How are the consoles doing, and what's in store for them this year? Read up on what analysts have to say about the matter, and head over to the full article.

Analysts are known for scrutinizing trends and then making predictions based on those trends. In this case, David Cole of DFC Intelligence has his own take on the Xbox 360's performance in Europe. Interestingly, it includes a predicted switching of loyalties as well. Analyze the details in the full article after the jump.

If you've been keeping up with Electronic Arts' efforts to buy out Take-Two Interactive, then we've got an interesting bit of behind-the-scenes news for you. It seems that EA's own John Riccitiello views the takeover bid as an offered helping hand to the publisher, and this in itself is not going good with quite a few of this industry's leading analysts. Check out all the details in the full article and see what you think about this little hubbub.

 

DFC Intelligence, expert in video game and entertainment market research, recently released forecasts for the gaming industry. According to the research firm, Microsoft's Xbox 360 could lose the so-called "console war" and fall in a distant third place when year 2009 kicks in.

Various sources make it quite clear that the Nintendo Wii is zooming past its competition in terms of sales but Microsoft's horse trails close behind. DFC researchers, however, found weakness in 360's recent sales. If the current pace goes on for a couple of years, the Wii will dominate until 2008 ends. Sony's year will be 2009, when PlayStation 3 sales move into overdrive as DFC foresees.

DFC analyst David Cole pointed out how likely Sony will be leading in the software race even if Nintendo's console continues to sell. In order to share Xbox 360's presence to the scene, Microsoft "will need to build a strong base outside North America," said Cole.

By 2009, DFC expects US$ 47 billion in revenue for the gaming industry. Sales of the three big consoles are to reach numbers between 180 million to 210 million when 2012 comes - if DFC's projections are correct, that is. During the same year, PC gaming could be racking up $US 13 billion in revenue thanks to the ever-growing online games market and convenient digital distribution.

DFC's research is strongly positive toward handhelds. Cole stated that the Nintendo DS could be on top as the best-selling game system ever five years from now. Nothing is set in stone, but we can be sure of one thing: it'll be fun to watch how everything unfolds, and gamers win in the end.

For some years, Sony has been the reigning leader in the video game realm. The release of its PS1 and PS2 consoles have become big hits in the market, easily giving Sony the upper hand in the competition. Up to this year, the PS2 is still selling like pancakes, bagging in more revenues than its other competitors. According to David Cole of DFC Intelligence, Sony is pretty much in control of the gaming market.

Unless it makes a wrong turn, that is.

Apparently, Cole thinks so, "Microsoft and Nintendo had to hope Sony fumbled or significantly changed its strategy so that they could get an opportunity to capture some of that PS2 audience. Now it is clear Sony is handing its competitors a golden opportunity."

Surely, Nintendo and Microsoft are girding their loins for an attack of opportunity. The Wii and Xbox 360 are like their own versions of weapons of mass destruction, both levelled against the much-awaited release of Sony's PS3. In this clash of gaming titans, Cole predicts that Nintendo would come in first.

The full article awaits after the jump!

Although it will be nice seeing two of the most reliable companies joining forces to bring better services to gamers, gaming research firm DFC Intelligence says we shouldn't bank on the Apple-Nintendo merger.

According to DFC Intelligence President David Cole, in light of the upcoming Wii, now is not the best time for Nintendo to sell. Although notably the loser in the last generation console war, Nintendo will now have a chance to redeem themselves and to "restart their market share" with the advent of the next generation.

Cole also pointed out, "Obviously Nintendo has done really well in terms of their profitability and their market value has really held up—if you go back and look at how their market value has held up over this past generation compared to, say Sony and Microsoft, who have seen drastic declines in their market value."

If the Wii comes out and if it flops, then talks of a merger with Apple and Nintendo may as well be more believable. Yet if this happens, one should also put into mind that "news" like these always lean on the speculative side rather than conclusive. "When you're talking about mergers of that size, there's always so many moving parts, especially when you've got an established Japanese company possibly merging with a North American company—and that's always just very speculative. Even if they start talks, it's just months and months of trying to get together and oftentimes they just clash at the last minute," explains Cole.

However, it is not unlikely that Apple is interested in Nintendo, says Cole. What made the whole talk "pure rumor" is the fact that Nintendo will most likely turn down such offer by Apple. Cole offers, "[Apple] could start reaching out to see if Nintendo is interested, and then [Nintendo] say no. That would probably be the most likely scenario that I would see. You know, companies are always talking with each other... which can lead to rumors and speculation. It just goes on all the time. The chance of something actually getting finalized is a totally different ballgame."

So although the fact that Apple may start being more active in the gaming race, considering talks that they have LucasArts' tech director Mike Lampbell onboard, they just have to do their gaming ventures without the aid of Nintendo. And Nintendo has to wage its next-gen battle without Apple.