From the Land of the Rising Sun comes the major news. Details are inside!

Joining forces, Namco and Bandai would become the second largest game/toy maker in Japan. Their combined 458 billion yen in annual sales would be surpassed only by that of Sega Sammy Holdings.

Both companies had been looking for other companies with which to integrate their operations to ensure their survival against newly intensified competition.

A few reasons for Australians to look forward to the rest of the year.

Nintendo Australia recently sent out a newsletter to their club members. As well as some information about "Zelda Month", which is now in full swing, they've included a list of upcoming titles for Australian gamers to look forward to. Here's what you can expect to arrive in Australia through the coming months -- remember though, as ususal, all dates are subject to change without notice:

To celebrate our excellent new browser-based chat client, we're giving away two Nintendo DS T-Shirts tonight. If you know your trivia, one of them could be yours!

Once upon a time Planet GameCube had a web-based IRC chat client anyone could use from their web browser window. PGC has finally brought this convenient feature back with the excellent PJIRC client. Now you can talk in the PGC chatroom and personal message your buddies from any web browser supporting Java applets! No need to bother with extra software, just visit the chat page and accept the security authentication.

Nintendo DS may be selling strong, but Nintendo is still looking for ways to increase public awareness in Japan.

Yesterday Nintendo announced it has passed the 5-million mark for worldwide DS shipments after overwhelming acceptance in PAL regions. Today GameSpot reports that the company will be selling the DS in less traditional Japanese stores.

In an interview with Zaikai Magazine, Satoru Iwata revealed that Nintendo will be selling Nintendo DS products in retail stores that currently do not carry video games.

Interact with Utada's pooch via Japan's DS Download service, and browse other puppies' profiles online.

With the recent release of Nintendogs, there's a lot of puppy business going on in Japan.

First off, is a bonus from pop singer Utada, who has been featured in most of Japan's DS commercials with her song, "Easy Breezy." You can now interact with Utada's puppy, Shin, through the Nintendo DS download kiosks. Other new downloads include demos of Cauduceus, Ganbare Goemon, and one Nintendo's bizarre educational games.

The opera sequence from Final Fantasy VI makes its North American live debut.

Square Enix Reveals Special Guest Performances For "More Friends - Music From Final Fantasy®" Concert In Los Angeles

Gibson Amphitheater at Universal Citywalk Plays Host to Unique Videogame Music Performances on May 16th

Soundtrack to Concert Series Available For First Time in North America

It's official. Nintendogs is a huge hit in Japan.

Japanese Judges Rate Nintendo's Puppies 'Perfect' as DS Sales Increase Fivefold

Animal lovers and Nintendo fans in Japan are proving that it's almost impossible to say no to a puppy. Nintendogs(TM), the new puppy simulator for Nintendo DS(TM), hit Japanese stores April 21. In its first week,... Read more...

The former president of Nintendo will be leaving his chair on the board of directors for his official retirement.

Between 1949 and 2002, Hiroshi Yamauchi was the iron-fisted president of Nintendo. The gaming community was shocked when he stepped down from the top after his 53-year reign, and even more shocked to hear that Satoru Iwata, former president of HAL and only a recent addition to NCL's stable of executives, would be his replacement. Yamauchi stayed with Nintendo as a prominent member of the company's board of directors.

EA teams up with USC to give away scholarships to summer camp game development.

EA and USC Team Up to Offer First Female Scholarship to USC Interactive Entertainment Summer Camp;Scholarship Designed to Build Female Profile in Growing Entertainment Industry

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 27, 2005--Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS) and The University of Southern... Read more...

It's almost impossible to not give the game perfect scores when it gives you that "sad puppy eyes" look.

Weekly Famitsu, Japan's most popular game magazine, recently reviewed Nintendo's puppy simulator, Nintendogs. The magazine's review section is notorious for being tough, as four reviewers with different tastes each look at a game, then give a score out of 10.

Well, the four reviewers looked... Read more...

In anticipation for Pokemon Emerald, fourteen finalists will compete for supremacy.

Top Pokemon Trainers Take over Seattle's Space Needle: the Emerald City Battle Tower

14 Competitors Battle to Win Trip to Japan

REDMOND, Wash.--April 26, 2005--Fourteen finalist Pokemon(R) masters will meet on April 30 at Seattle's famous Space Needle to determine who will be crowned the "Pokemon(R) Emerald" Ultimate Frontier Battle Brain.

Pac-Man Fever comes to the Nintendo DS.

The Legendary Pac-Man Makes His Nintendo DS(TM) System Debut

SANTA CLARA, Calif., (April 26, 2005) – Leading video games developer and publisher Namco Hometek Inc. announced today that "PAC-PIX(TM)" has shipped to retail outlets throughout North America for the Nintendo DS™ system. Combining... Read more...

Ubisoft's third entry since the revitalization of the series seeks to appeal to fans of both previous games.

UBISOFT UNVEILS PRINCE OF PERSIA® 3 (Working Title)

The Warrior Prince Will Once Again Reign Supreme in the Next Prince of Persia® Masterpiece

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – APRIL 25, 2005 – Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest videogame publishers, announced that it is developing Prince... Read more...

Maybe a new kind of "game" needs a new kind of "coverage".

One of our devout readers has pointed us to Puppy Times, a special blog set up by a group of gamers to share their Nintendogs stories. The unique new DS game (or non-game, if you prefer) was just released in Japan, and PGC is expecting an import copy very soon. Of course, we'll be working on a full... Read more...

GameCube, DS, GBA SP, you name it. You can't escape them.

EA Announces Plans for The Sims 2 on Consoles, Handhelds and Mobile Phones; Best Selling PC Game Redefined for New Platforms to be Available Fall 2005

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 19, 2005--Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced that The Sims™ 2 is in development for... Read more...

Nintendo partners with Broadcom for the integrated wireless capabilities of their next-gen system.

BROADCOM ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH NINTENDO TO ENABLE NEXT GENERATION WIRELESS GAMING CONSOLES

Broadcom's Unique Technology Portfolio and Highly Integrated Features Provide a New and Exciting Gaming Experience

IRVINE, Calif. – April 19, 2005 – Broadcom Corporation (Nasdaq: BRCM), a... Read more...

Look for the Fantastic Four superheroes on future products.

Mad Catz Enters into License Agreement with Marvel to Produce Fantastic Four Video Game Accessories

SAN DIEGO--April 19, 2005--Mad Catz Interactive, Inc. (AMEX/TSX:

MCZ), the world's leading third party video game accessory provider,

and Marvel Enterprises, Inc., a leading global entertainment and

GameStop reveals its plans to buy merge with Electronics Boutique to make one huge retail chain.

GameStop and EB, known as bitter retail rivals, are putting down their weapons and joining forces. GameStop will purchase all outstanding shares of EB at $55.18, turning the retail chain and maker of Game Informer Magazine into a $4 billion-a-year company with 3,800 stores worldwide.

Analysts... Read more...

Ad agencies, publishers and developers predict product placement will be huge by the end of the decade.

250 LEADING ADVERTISING AGENCY, GAME DEVELOPER AND PUBLISHER EXECUTIVES ATTEND ADVERTISING IN GAMES FORUM

Forecasts Call for $800 million Advertising in Games Market in 2009, $1 Billion in US by 2010

AUSTIN, Texas - April 18, 2005 - The Game Initiative announced today that 250 executives... Read more...

Sign up online to participate in this Chicago-based event!

XTREME CYBER MANIA @ NAVY PIER CHICAGO Online Registration Now Open

Gamers connect in the Windy City sponsored by NEC LCD Large Viewing Area Displays

Buffalo Grove , IL – Apr. 13, 2005 – Advance Online Registration is now available at

http://www.cyberfest.us/reservations.html . Admission... Read more...