|
 News
Week
of February 21- February 27, 2000
[Friday,
February 25, 2000]
Arcade
Playstation 2
As part of an effort to exploit the economies of scale and reduce production
cost, Sony Computer Entertainment will make Playstation 2 circuit board
available to Japanese arcade game makers. Nihon Keizai Shimbun reports
that demand in Japan for the 128-bit Playstation 2 innards is strong,
as arcade game makers scramble to meet the technology bar set by next
weeks Japanese launch of the Playstation 2 console.
Kid's
Choice
The Playstation 2 debut may be right around the corner, but the hearts
of kid gamers still belong to the Nintendo 64. The nominees for the Favorite
Video Game award at the thirteenth annual Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards
are a near Nintendo sweep, with four of the five nominated games coming
from the big N. The nominees are Donkey Kong 64, Mario Party, Pokemon,
and a lone Playstation entry in Toy Story 2. The winners, chosen by popular
vote among Nickelodeon viewer and website visitors, will be named at the
Kid's Choice Awards ceremony on April 15 at the Hollywood Bowl.
CES
Dates Change
The Consumer Electronics Association has announced a change in the dates
for the International Consumer Electronics Show for 2001. The show, previously
scheduled to run from January 7-10, will instead be held from January
6-9. The move is intended to help offset exhibitor costs by extending
set up time. "By starting on Saturday the 6th, we allow our exhibitors
two additional days to set up their booths, while lowering their overtime
costs," explained a CEA spokesperson.
[Thursday,
February 24, 2000]
EA
Acquires Dreamworks
Interactive Electronic Arts is buying game maker Dreamworks Interactive.
Under the terms of the agreement, Dreamworks Interactive will become a
wholly subsidiary of Electronic Arts while continuing to produce titles
related to Dreamworks SKG properties. The company, originally founded
as joint venture between Dreamworks SKG and Microsoft, has been publishing
with EA for the past two years. Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
Namco Teaches PS2
Namco is teaming with Digital Hollywood in Japan to create a training
program for would be Playstation 2 developers. The program is being created
to address an expected surge in demand for Playstation 2 qualified programmers
in Japan. The six-month course will be held at Namco's creative center
in Yokohama, and enrollment will be limited to just 15 students paying
close to $9,000 in tuition and fees.
Carmack
Promises Action
Id's John Carmack has pledged to cover the cost of legal council to enforce
the open source license attached to the Quake 1 code. The action stems
from a Quake 1 project called Quake Lives, the creators of which have
chosen to refuse to release the project's source code. "I am positive
that you are required to give the source to anyone that asks," said Carmack
in a public statement, "If you can't stand to work under the GPL, you
should release the code to your last binary and give up your project.
I will pay whatever lawyer the Free Software Foundation recommends to
pursue this."
PC
Data Top Ten
There are some new players at the top of ten best list for the week of
February 6-12.
1. The Sims, Electronic Arts
2. Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Disney
3. MP Roller Coaster Tycoon, Hasbro Interactive
4. Microsoft Age of Empires II: Age Of Kings, Microsoft
5. Half-Life, Havas Interactive
6. MP Roller Coaster Tycoon Corkscrew Follies, Hasbro Interactive
7. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Gold Edition, Red Storm Ent.
8. Frogger, Hasbro Interactive
9. Deer Hunter III, GT Interactive
10. Hoyle Board Games 2000, Havas Interactive
[Wednesday,
February 23, 2000]
Sony
Broadband
Sony Corporation of America will create a broadband unit to consolidate
much of its recent cable and internet investments. The unit will focus
on event and subscription music and film content, and will certainly play
a part in Sony's Playstation 2 broadband content plans. Sony has named
Emily Susskind to head up the unit. Susskin was involved with Sony's investments
in Tivo and Cablevision.
THQ's Record Quarter
Fourth quarter financial results for THQ show record earnings. Net earnings
for the quarter were up 37 percent to a record $14.8 million on revenues
up 18 percent to $131.7 million. For the year ended December 31, 1999,
THQ totaled income of $32.9 million on revenues of $306.4 million. The
results include revenues from Genetic Anomalies, the internet studios
purchased by THQ last December. THQ attributes the record results to strong
franchises like Rugrats and a successful strategy that double international
revenues in 1999.
Short
Awards
SCTV alum and talk show host Martin Short will host the third annual Interactive
Achievement Awards on May 11 in Los Angeles. The awards, presented by
the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences coincide with the opening
day of the 2000 E3 Expo. "The Academy is honored to have Martin Short
as its host for the 2000 Awards," said Academy President Jim Charne, "His
presence and talent is a fitting tribute to the blossoming of our interactive
entertainment industry."
[Tuesday,
February 22, 2000]
Gates
At GDC
The Miller Freeman Game Group has announced
that Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates will address the assembled masses at
the upcoming Game Developers Conference in San Jose. Gates is expected
to outline Microsoft's plans for the future of computer entertainment.
"Having someone of Mr. Gates' stature in the technology world share
ideas with the people behind tomorrow's games is a significant industry
milestone," said associate conference director Dara Gray. The presentation,
open to conference attendees only, will take place on March 10. The Miller
Freeman Game group is the publisher of Gamasutra as well as the producer
of the Game Developers Conference.
Wilson
Joins Turbine
Long time Computer Gaming World editor and contributer Johnny Wilson is
joining the board of directors of Turbine Entertainment Software. Wilson
is currently group publisher for Hasbro's Wizards of the Coast Periodicals.
Welcoming Wilson to the board of directors are newly appointed COO Ed
Barron, who was previously with semiconductor test equipment manufacturer
Inspex, and also new CFO Mark Pover. "[Wilson's] significant experience
in the gaming industry, and his considerable talent will help us accelerate
our growth, and extend the company's leadership position," said Barron.
Past
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