Firm issues revised forecast following disappointing nine month financials. Nintendo has more than trebled its loss forecast for the business year ending March 31, 2012, from the 20 billion yen (£165 million) expected back in October to 65 billion yen (£535 million). The news was delivered alongside disappointing financial results for the first three quarters, during which the company recorded net sales of 556 billion yen (£4.58 billion), down 31.2 percent year-over-year, and losses of 48.3 billion yen (£398.2 million), compared to a profit of 49.5 billion yen (£407.3 million) for the same period the previous year.
Nintendo blamed the loss on August's global 3DS price cut, a similar reduction in Wii's price, and the continued strength of the yen, Edge reports.
Worldwide 3DS sales in the nine months to December 31 totalled 11.43 million units, but have now surpassed 15 million mark, while Nintendo sold 8.96 million Wii systems in the first three quarters.
Following the release of its financial results, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata reiterated that Wii U will be available in Japan, Europe and the US by the end of 2012.
An anonymous source has claimed that Wii U will be twice as powerful as Xbox 360. Speaking to Develop under the condition of anonymity, the unnamed development source said that Nintendo's tablet oriented console could run with around twice the processing and graphical power of Microsoft's console, but that the significantly increased power still hasn't been enough to satisfy some developers, who expected more from the console.
"I've heard [a project designer] complain it's underpowered compared to what Nintendo announced, resulting in people having to de-scale their plans," the source said.
Develop points out that it has had trouble cross-examining the claims due to Nintendo's stringent non-disclosure agreements.
Late last year a Japanese developer claimed to have the full Wii U specs and revealed that the box will contain a quad Core, 3 GHz PowerPC-based 45nm CPU, "very similar to the Xbox 360 chip", "768 MB of DRAM 'embedded' with the CPU and an "unknown" ATI-based graphics processor.
Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aime has confirmed that a full Wii U reveal will take place at E3 in June.
EA has slapped a March 16 UK release date on FIFA Street, with the rest of the world getting the Xbox 360 and PS3 game three days earlier. The firm has also announced a new feature called the Street Network, which is designed to encourage social competition among players.
Requiring an internet connection and an Origin account, Street Network will let players "capture video of their best tricks and share them in-game with friends, showing off their personal favourites and embarrassing their opponents.
"In addition, friends will be able to track and compare each other's progress throughout the game, including World Tour story mode and Head-to-Head Online Seasons, and follow each other's status in EA Sports Football Club".
The FIFA Street reboot uses the FIFA 12 engine, meaning it'll feature the same physics as its full pitch counterpart.
It also builds on FIFA 12's skills library with 50 new ways to make your opponent look daft.
BBC Worldwide has announced that Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock will be a Sony platform exclusive in Europe. The title was first revealed last year in December as a PS3, Vita and PC title, but will only be available on the PS3 and Vita consoles in Europe.
The Eternity Clock is developed by Guildford-based studio Supermassive Games and is the first of three in "a series of Doctor Who console games developed by BBC Worldwide Digital Entertainment and Games" that marks "a significant movement into gaming" for the company.
The BBC has also confirmed it will be releasing a Doctor Who MMO.
Microsoft's Xbox 360 successor will utilise a Radeon 6000 series GPU, the latest Xbox 720 rumour report has claimed. "Sources close to the project" apparently indicated the decision to IGN, claiming that Microsoft's is prepping the year-old graphics processor for its new console, rather than the newer 7000 series.
The processor will be derived from the Radeon HD 6670, it's claimed, which offers support for DirectX11, multidisplay output, 3D and 1080p HD output. You can currently buy the chip for less than £50.
The report goes on to claim Xbox 720's raw graphics processor will boast "six times the processing power" of the Xbox 360 and "20 percent greater performance" than Nintendo's forthcoming Wii U.
The next Xbox will ship to retailers in "late October or early November of next year", the report concludes.
UKIE has announced plans to launch a UK PC download chart, beginning next month with a beta version. The games and interactive entertainment trade body said in a press release that the new chart will represent "the first ever measure of actual digital sales of video games".
The project has been running in closed beta form for a number of months, aided by contributions from PC game publishers and digital distributors including Disney Interactive Studios, Focus Multimedia, Get Games, Green Man Gaming, Mastertronic, NCsoft, Sega, Square-Enix, Ubisoft and Warner Bros.
UKIE said it's also working towards producing charts for Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network downloads.
THQ has released a new Darksiders 2 trailer focusing on the sequel's new protagonist Death.
Darksiders 2 will launch on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC this summer, and is also set for release on Wii U later this year.
Check out the trailer below.
Activision has released a new Call of Duty Elite trailer to coincide with today's release of the first Modern Warfare 3 DLC. Starring Lt. Colonel Rob Riggle, an American actor, comedian and United States Marine Corps officer, the movie's in the style of an army recruitment ad.
Xbox Live playing premium CoD Elite members will get access to two new Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer maps today. Non-premium Elite members and PC and PS3 players will have to wait for further word on their release dates.
Activision recently confirmed that Elite will deliver monthly DLC for premium members, with at least "20 content drops" over the next nine months, including new maps, Spec Ops missions and game modes.
Check out the trailer below.
A report has suggested Microsoft will be dropping 'Points' as its virtual currency on Xbox Live by the end of the year. Inside Mobile App reports the change will be carried through to Windows Phone, Zune marketplace and Xbox Live.
Transactions will instead be based on the region of the purchasing account, with real money used to buy content. The change will bring Microsoft's various marketplaces in line with competitors such as Apple's App Store and Sony's PlayStation Network, both of which use real currency.
A Microsoft spokesperson has responded to the queries with the standard company line: "we do not comment on rumours or speculation."
A PS3 firmware hack has allowed the Vita to run Red Dead Redemption, Battlefield 3, Mortal Kombat and Batman: Arkham Asylum through the system's Remote Play function. The PS3s being used are running hacked versions of firmware 3.55, which was vulnerable to the Fail0verflow exploit.
PS3 support for the Vita was introduced in firmware 4.00. However, the hacked version of firmware 3.55 sees Sony's new handheld as a mobile phone, which in turn enables the Vita to play games through Remote Play, albeit with some severe input lag.
It was suggested last year that that all PS3 games will be playable on Vita via Remote Play in the future. SCE Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida even demonstrated the feature in his keynote address at Tokyo Game Show 2011.
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It appears that Modern Warfare 3 DLC downloaded by CoD Elite subscribers can only be played by the profile that downloads it. Usually, content downloaded to an Xbox console, including games and DLC, can be played by any profile on that console.
But according to complaints on the CoD forums, CoD Elite subs are finding that other profiles on their consoles aren't able to access the recently-released maps for Modern Warfare 3.
Click to view larger image
This doesn't sit well with users who note that the download's Terms and Conditions clearly state:"You can use this item on the first Xbox 360 console you downloaded it to. Access to this item will also be granted to all users on this first console."
An official response on the matter is yet to be issued.
Annual id Software celebration QuakeCon has been dated, while Blizzard has said its yearly fan-focused event, BlizzCon, won't return until 2013. id said: "North America's largest BYOC (Bring-Your-Own-Computer) LAN party, returns to the Hilton Anatole in Dallas, TX on August 2-5. Those interested in attending can reserve special room rates at the hotel by calling 1-800- Hiltons and ask for the QuakeCon 2012 rate ($154 per night).
Meanwhile, Blizzard said: "We're... heavily focused on getting Diablo III, Mists of Pandaria, and Heart of the Swarm into players' hands as soon as possible... In light of our jam-packed schedule, we've decided to hold the next BlizzCon in 2013."
Ken Rolston, one of the lead developers of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, has claimed the game offers the "best, coolest, fastest-paced, most tactile and silly-exciting fantasy combat of ANY RPG". In an interview with GameFront, Rolston, who previously worked as lead designer on Elder Scrolls titles Morrowind and Oblivion, confidently touted his new project's combat system.
"The pace, fluid movement, tactical richness, and physical and visual theatre of fantasy combat has always seemed the weakest feature of video RPGs, and Reckoning offers a fresh new answer in that department."
Click to view larger image
He also said Reckoning and Skyrim have a lot in common: "Both games are Way-Too-Big, and have Way-Too-Much-to-Do, and they both seduce you into playing for hours and hours and hours.
"They both have whacking big epic storylines, and elaborate faction quest lines, and boatloads of quests, and lots of characters and books, and lots of crafting and alchemy, and lots of ways to customize your character."
Following yesterday's launch of the first Modern Warfare 3 DLC, Activision has published a planned content release schedule for 2012. The publisher recently confirmed that CoD: Elite will deliver DLC on a monthly basis for premium members, with at least 20 content drops spread between January and September, including new maps, Spec Ops missions and game modes.
Non-Elite members, PS3 and PC players will have to wait for further word on DLC release dates. Here's the Elite content release schedule for Xbox 360 players:
January: Two new maps
February: New map
March: New map, two new Spec Ops missions
April: Two new maps
May: New map, new Spec Ops mission
June: New map, new Spec Ops mission, new game mode
July: Two new maps
August: New map, new Spec Ops mission, new game mode
September: New map, new Spec Ops mission
A group of hackers who don't particularly like the PC anti-cheat service Punk Buster have launched an attack on Battlefield 3 players to make their point. Innocent players are logging on to find themselves banned from Punk Buster servers, being kicked from play and receiving error messages.
Hackers on the site Artificial Aiming have declared: "We are bringing back the unerring of punkbuster back for a 3rd season. We have selected ggc-stream as the target since they have the most streaming bf3 servers and makes it very easy to add fake bans,"
"In 2011 we hit them with a mass ban wave and now were are banning real players from battlelog while ggc-stream is totally unaware. We have framed 150+ bf3 players alone," they add, before receiving universal praise from other forum members on the site.
EA has issued a statement with a workaround for those affected: "We are aware that some Battlefield 3 players are experiencing connection issues with PunkBuster enabled servers. This problem is limited to a small subset of players on PC and will not impact players on PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360.
"We are actively looking into the specifics of this issue and we are confident that we will have a permanent solution in place shortly. In the meantime, if a player's connectivity has been affected, we recommend that in the interim they join servers that are not running PunkBuster. There is a filter setting for this in the multiplayer server browser."
EA has announced that its Origin digital download platform is expanding to offer PC games from 11 new publishing partners. They are Trion Worlds, Robot Entertainment CD Projekt RED, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, inXile entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning Ltd. and N3V Games.
Starting today, Trion's MMORPG Rift has been added to Origin for purchase and download, with more titles from EA's new partners set to be made available over the coming months.
Warner, THQ and Capcom started offering titles through Origin late last year.
They are Trion Worlds, Robot Entertainment CD Projekt RED, Freebird Games, Recoil Games, Autumn Games, 1C Company, inXile entertainment, Paradox Interactive, Core Learning Ltd. and N3V Games.
Starting today, Trion's MMORPG Rift has been added to Origin for purchase and download, with more titles from EA's new partners set to be made available over the coming months.
Origin vice president of business development Craig Rechenmacher said: "Origin is focused on providing choice to consumers and the games they play.
"From blockbuster franchises to high-quality independent titles, we're bringing the industry's best content to one place. We're excited to welcome new partners and a diverse new line-up of titles to Origin today."
Warner, THQ and Capcom started offering titles through Origin late last year.
Bethesda has released the beta version of its 1.4 patch for Skyrim. Yes, a beta for a patch. The patch is only accessible to those that have opted in to Steam's beta functionality, and the patch itself is still in development. If it isn't already clear by now that there's an element of risk attached to applying this update, make sure you've got save files backed-up.
Here's how to get the beta:
1. Log into Steam
2. Click on Steam in the upper menu
3. Select Settings
4. Under the Account tab, go to the Beta Participation section and select Change.
5. A drop down menu will appear. Select Skyrim Beta.
6. Select OK.
7. Steam will now restart. After Steam restarts, Skyrim will be updated to the Beta version currently available.
EA looks set to bundle various Mass Effect 3 downloadable content packs with action figures in North America. According to US toy specialist BigBadToyStore (via MCV), the range of figures will carry a price of $17.99 individually or $67.99 for all four, and come bundled with "different in-game content".
"Each figure includes an in-pack card giving you access to downloadable in-game bonus content," the blurb reads. "Each figure contains different in-game content, exclusive to North American released product."
The featured characters are Miranda, Garrus, Mordin and Legion. Each is between 6.7-7.25 inches high.
There's no word yet on whether these figures will make it over to Europe, but MCV recommends this particular retailer as import friendly.
Mass Effect 3's out on March 6.
FIFA 12 has become the highest grossing sports game in UK history. "It has already made more money than any other FIFA title or indeed any other sports title to date," retail monitor GfK Chart-Track said today.
The second best-selling game in the UK last year, FIFA 12 took the top spot on the all formats chart for the fifth week in a row today (it has now topped the UK rankings seven times in total).
Chart-Track said: "The five week run is the joint second best run of any FIFA title although it has a long way to go to beat FIFA World to the World Cup 98 which had a record 11 weeks in a row at No.1."
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Thursday, 26 January 2012 10:19
