Gamers Evolved

Nintendo crushed the most recent rumor that has been circulating the internet for some time now concerning their DS. We were all hoping to see a new design that would improve upon Nintendo’s DS – which we were hoping to see at the E3 expo in July. Our expectations were not unfounded. It was Enterbrain’s Hirokazu Hamamura who stated that this was a “possibility”.

Despite our hopes Nintendo stated this week that it was just, “rumour and speculation.” Of course that doesn’t still leave us hoping that they might just be dodging our questions and trying to hide the news from us till they can surprise us in their own time.

We were checking out the Mafia II official website and we happy to see some details of the new game. On the website they stated that the game will be released on the Xbox 360, PC, and PS3 with the gameplay being “virtually identical across all platforms”.

We were also given some story line information, “… a dark and seductive story about one man’s journey through the unforgiving world of the Mob. Set in an open-world environment, Mafia II ushers you into Empire City during the 1940s and 1950s.” Mafia II is one of the few games (at this time) that we are looking forward to later this year. It is set to be released November 2008.

Nintendo Wii has been granted the use of BBC’s Video on Demand service – iPlayer – which they can use through the Opera Internet Browser. It is not yet completed updated with all of the extra features – but they have promised that the new version will be coming shortly. The Wii has given gamers another way to watch their favorite programs through the ever so popular iPlayer.

It is not surprising that the BBC has chosen the Nintendo Wii (rather than the Xbox 360 or the Playstation 3) to deploy the iPlayer given Microsoft and Sony’s reluctance to reduce their stranglehold on whatever content goes into their gaming console.

The Gran Turismo 5 prologue is becoming more popular than anyone would have thought. It has shot up into the UK game charts and its launch has actually increased the sales for PS3 hardware. The first week that it was released it helped the PS3 to outsell both the DS and the Wii by a large number. This is something that they have not accomplished in a long time.

Microsoft is planning to catch up with the compeition (a.k.a. the Nintendo Wii) by creating a brand new remote controller that has motion-sensing technology. Sound familiar? They are creating the new remote to compete with the one that is used by Nintendo and something that everyone loves.

“Microsoft’s response to Nintendo’s Wii will appear before the end of the year,” states the report, adding that the Xbox 360 motion-sensing device has been in development since last summer. The report claims that Microsoft’s controller is similar to the Wii Remote, but also comes with an analogue stick and a microphone built in.