Videogame giants battle it out
Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo have announced a slew of attractive deals such as price cuts and new game releases at the largest game event in the US. Find out what happened at the E3 Summit this week. -AGENCIES
Fri, Jul 18, 2008
AGENCIES
Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony are waging battle at the Electronics Entertainment Expo, each claiming to be the true king of videogame consoles in a booming multi-billion dollar industry.
The crown of top videogame console is well worth fighting for, with spending on game software and hardware predicted to top 20 billion U.S. dollars (S$27 billion) this year in the United States and more than double that worldwide.
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Microsoft to build on its Xbox live platform
Microsoft seized momentum first by announcing the price of its best-selling Xbox 360 Pro model game console with a 20 gigabyte hard drive to US$299 (S$403) from US$349 (S$470).
The company also introduced a new Xbox 360 model with a 60 gigabyte hard drive, which will go on sale in stores in the U.S. and Canada for US$349 (S$470) in early August.
It also displayed a line-up of games to drive demand for the console, including "Gears of War 2," a much-anticipated sequel to its blockbuster science-fiction shooter game. It will debut exclusively for the Xbox 360 on November 7.
In a bid to further strengthen its stronghold of Xbox Live platform, Microsoft said it signed a deal to make TV shows and movies from NBC Universal available on its Xbox Live online platform. The company said a third of all paid content downloaded in the U.S. is movies and television shows.
It also announced a tie-up with movie rental company Netflix Inc to let Netflix subscribers watch streamed movies and TV shows on Xbox 360 game consoles starting this fall.
Sony takes to video
Up next was Sony, who announced a strategy of price cut and focuses on making the console a home entertainment hub capable of storing downloaded movies and games.
It also plans to launch in September a PlayStation 3 game console with an 80-gigabyte hard drive for US$399 (S$538), the same price as the PS3 with a 40-gigabyte hard drive.
In an attempt to close the gap with Microsoft's Xbox Live service, it will introduce a video distribution service on its PlayStation online network that allows users to rent or purchase movies or TV.
Movies and TV shows from major studios, including its own Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. and News Corp's 20th Century Fox, will be available on the service to rent or to own.
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Nintendo rolls out Wii games
Meanwhile, industry leader Nintendo struck a confident note and stayed with its winning formula -- easy-to-play games for the mainstream audience.
Riding on the success of its popular Wii video game console, Nintendo unveiled fresh titles for gamers to throw frisbees and rock on. It is also introducing a new suite of Wii sports games, along with a more sensitive Wii MotionPlus controller add-on to debut next spring.
"Wii Sports Resort" lets users throw a frisbee to a virtual dog or duel one another with swords.
Most notable, however, was its plans to launch a music game - the "Wii Music" - which allows players to simulate playing more than 60 instruments using its controllers.
It is anticipated that this lates into the fast-growing software segment pioneered by Activision's "Guitar Hero", which turned the music-playing genre into arguably the hottest category for video games.
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Videogame console giants jockey for throne