As expected, the Big 3 responds to the fresh NPD results for April, where Nintendo's DS handheld took in a whopping one million hardware sales, exceeding all other platforms' sales combined. See what they have to say on the numbers at the full article.

The Xbox 360 version of Resident Evil 5 was still at the top of the heap last month in software sales. The game sold 938,000 units, almost 20% higher than the expected sales numbers. With the hardware and software sales now announced, Sony and Nintendo have also sent out their own statements about the March 2009 sales report. Both companies echoed the optimism Microsoft exhibited in their own statement.

Yet again, we hear from John Koller. He's been everywhere since yesterday. He already said that he wanted Ready At Dawn back for PSP development, and now, it looks like he doesn't want to let go of Rockstar Games too. Well, who wouldn't? Koller reveals that there are talks to get Rockstar back into PSP development for another GTA game (which gives the GTA: San Andreas Stories rumor some backing). In other Rockstar-related matters, he also reacts to GTA4's Xbox 360-exclusive DLC and the release of GTA Chinatown Wars on the DS.

Despite hitting some snags in the form of Sega, SCEA, Capcom, and Microsoft backouts, it appears E for All is gaining steam after getting big boosts from dozens of other movers in the gaming industry who have confirmed participation. To prove that E for All is going smoothly as planned, IDG World Expo is now announcing that Future US, Inc. will be publishing the official show magazine for the said event.

This is big news especially for those who are familiar in the ins and outs of attending conventions like this. Why? Event magazines not only provide attendees with a good source of show floor guide, exhibitor and product information, special features and interviews, it's also a great souvenir - it goes right beside event press IDs and pictures with booth babes. Anyway, IDG World Expo CEO Mary Dolaher expressed the same enthusiasm after saying:

We're thrilled to team up with Future to create "E for All Magazine," the event’s official show publication. Given Future’s experience producing publications such as Official Xbox Magazine, PSM: Independent PlayStation Magazine, PC Gamer, Maximum PC and Next Gen, we’re greatly anticipating the creation of a top-notch magazine and commemorative keepsake for this inaugural event.

The magazine will be a 64-page collector's edition in support of the inaugural E for All. Contents will include feature stories, game reviews, product highlights, a full expo schedule, floor plan and exclusive features, interviews with acclaimed game developers, and a user-generated car art from Forza 2. E for All magazine will also carry a commemorative cover to give spice to the said event which will take place October 18-21 at the Los Angeles Convention Center - told you it's a keeper.

FiringSquad reports that Sony along with other major video game publishers will not be gracing the inaugural E For All Expo. Earlier reports had Sony pegged for at least some booth presence at the event.

Aside from Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA), FiringSquad reports that Sony Online Entertainment (SOE), NCSoft, Sega and Capcom have also declined to take part in the event. Microsoft, meanwhile, has apparently not decided whether or not it will grace the event.

Back in March, Nintendo of America signed on as an anchor exhibitor for the event. Electronic Arts was also confirmed as an exhibitor earlier this week. FiringSquad also notes that the IDG World Expo website lists THQ, Konami and Namco as event exhibitor along with hardware companies Intel and NVidia.

The E For All Expo, which is being promoted by IDG World Expo as a replacement for the old E3 format, will take place in Los Angeles on October 18 to 21.

And the votes (and sales figures) are in! Here's the data from Amazon.com as of July 8 that gives us the latest list of the top 5 games in America all across your favorite platforms. With all three next gen consoles vying for your hearts and thumbs, let's see if you're favorite game made the list.

  

Top 5 Games in America per console:

Nintendo Wii
Pokemon Battle Revolution didn't manage to get into the top 5 and is not likely to catch up with Super Paper Mario which is also a hit in Japan.

1. Wii Play (Nintendo)
2. Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition (Capcom)
3. Mario Party 8 (Nintendo)
4. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo)
5. Super Paper Mario (Nintendo)

Xbox 360
Although Forza Motorsport is still strong, sales are starting to drop.

1. The Darkness (2K Games)
2. Guitar Hero II Bundle (RedOctane)
3. Overlord (Codemasters)
4. Gears of War (Microsoft)
5. Forza Motorsport 2 (Microsoft)

PlayStation 3
There seems to be a revitalized interest to the PS3 thanks to Ninja Gaiden Sigma.

1. Ninja Gaiden Sigma (Tecmo)
2. The Darkness (2K Games)
3. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas (Ubisoft)
4. Resistance: Fall of Man (SCEA)
5. Transformers: The Game (Activision)

Click on the full article to get the top 5 games on the DS, PC, PS2 and PSP!

 

For every ground-breaking title out there, there exists an unsung hero. They – like soldiers and bad sitcoms of old – are the miserable underdogs who never receive the due credit they deserve for their work. We're not talking about the developers -  we're talking about specialists - the (fictional) guys who work behind the scenes to ensure that the elements in whatever genre you play will always remain in tip-top condition, whether its your resident androgynous antagonist 's script, or your unfriendly neighborhood mook's marksmanship scores.

These guys will be the topic of today's quick list - along with an explanation with that special thing they do just to make the game better for one special individual - you. On to the list!
 
1. Sephiroth's acting coach
Let's be honest - Sephiroth isn't that original. More than one anime, manga, and J-RPG can boast its own brew of silver-haired, bad-ass sword-wielding bishie hotness, with Sephie being just a part of this popular trend. What sets him apart, however, is execution (acting, not Aeris…).
 
Sephiroth's dark foreboding lines and steely glare will haunt many a gamer's dreams, and for this, we can thank the man's ever-capable acting coach. We're talking the drama-guru who made Sephiroth walk the walk, talk the talk - the dude who probably taught him captivatingly cheesy one-liners like "Shall I give you despair?"
 
I'm afraid you haven't, Mr. Sephiroth's Acting Coach. You did give plenty of fanboys/girls something to think about for their next few - err - dreams, though...
 
Special accreditation goes to Cloud's hairdresser.

The rest of the list is available in the Full Article

And in business and industry news, Nintendo was granted bragging rights recently as the Japanese gaming giant hit an all-time stock high on Monday, June 25, breaking past the worth of Sony Corp. as a whole (and not just SCEA) for one fleeting moment. The company's shares rose 1.5% that day, raising it's capitalization worth to US$ 53 billion.

 

And although the market closed with Nintendo's shares taking a slight dip, it allowed only a 1% cap from Sony's overall capitalization worth. It appears that while the gaming community was eyeing the console race closely and the media's heartbeat was synced to each move the three big players make, investors have been turning the tide of battle to Nintendo behind the curtains.

Just last fiscal year, Nintendo only managed US$ 7.8 billion in profits, while Sony and its consumer electronics empire (Sony) encompassing movies (Sony Pictures Entertainment), music (Sony Music) and games (Sony Online Entertainment, SCEA, SCEE) pretty much vacuumed US$ 61 billion worth of cash.

According to analysts in Asia, there's much promise in the base of support for the Kyoto-based company's efforts. In fact, while PlayStation 3 fans have reduced their visage of the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS as mere toys and Xbox 360 fans have flaunted their superior online gaming capabilities (a feature the Wii has lacked), analysts believe Nintendo is lop-siding the competition in reality, no matter what people choose to believe.

NPD reports, real-time sales numbers, and investor demand for security analysis on the gaming giants has spurred optimistic predictions for the company, including Macquarie Securities analyst David Gibson's forecast of a JP¥ 50,000 (US$ 404) 12-month share target - that's a US$ 40 gap closing for an entire fiscal year and up from last week's JP¥ 44,500 (US$ 361.15).

Other predictions were also favorable over Nintendo's choice to invest more on commercials promoting DS and Wii games, while Wii hardware shipment forecasts were pegged at a positive 17.8 million units, up from 14.2 million, which Gibson believes Nintendo may be able to grab within the present fiscal year alone.

Back in March, we learned that there's this mysterious video game in the works called Crash of the Titans. Some speculated that this could be a new Crash Bandicoot title or the 80s hit Clash of the Titans. If we are to believe our eyes and poor Spanish comprehension, then Crash of the Titans is all about our favorite marsupial.

According to the scanned page of a Spanish game magazine, the new video game will be available for the Wii, Nintendo DS, and Game Boy Advance (GBA). We didn't see any mention of other platforms so it is highly possible that Crash of the Titans is going to be a Nintendo exclusive. Back in July 2006, even publisher Vivendi mentioned that it will resurrect the fanny pack-bearing creature on the Nintendo Wii.

It should be remembered, however, that the first ever Crash Bandicoot game appeared on PlayStation 1 (PSOne) more than 10 years ago. It was developed by studio Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA). If you remember this character from that era, take a closer look because Crash Bandicoot is sporting a new image.

The tentative release date for Crash of the Titans, still based from the Spanish magazine, is sometime this October.

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Update: Over at the Gameswank forums, member Dorfdad managed to post some more scans containing the Crash Bandicoot feature from the Spanish game mag. And from what's written in these pages, we learned that the title of the currently Nintendo-only game will be Crash Bandicoot: Landing of the Titans. Not much though has been revealed about the gameplay and other features of this title (because we still can't comprehend Spanish well), so we guess we'll have to wait a little longer for a more official announcement about the Landing of the Titans. For now, let's see what changes are going to be made to Crash through these mag scans:

  

The creation of games publisher Detn8 Games Ltd. was recently announced, and spearheading this venture are the two video game industry veterans Ellen Fuog and Jeff Hill. What makes this different from other publishing companies? Well, for one thing, the two heads of the company have 52 years of experience between them, thus giving this company an edge.

So who are these two veterans, exactly?

Ellen Fuog has 28 years experience in the video game industry. She founded and served as president of UK-based Ignition Entertainment’s US operation from 2002 until 2006, and was also president (and founder) of AIA USA. On top of that, she also served as the vice president of sales and marketing for Jaleco USA, and the vice president of sales and marketing for Kaneko Entertainment. Before that, she held the vice presidency of sales and marketing for WICO, a joystick and peripheral manufacturer. She also started up her own sales rep company, Ellen Fuog Associates.

Meanwhile, Jeff Hill has been in the video game industry for 23 years. Starting in the video game business as a tester for Mindscape in 1984, he started and operated his own company, Black Sheep, Inc., since 1994. He was also the product development director for Kaneko Entertainment and Jaleco USA.

Detn8 has already acquired an all-platform licensee status with Nintendo and SCEA and is scheduled to publish its first release in June, 2007. We will have to wait and see whether the experience of both owners will be enough to bring this company to greatness.