The games industry in the UK is continuing to grow, with the highest sales ever recorded last year of 1.26 billion pounds spent on software.

VIDEO GAMES CONTINUE TO GROW

ELSPA, the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association, today announced the continued buoyant growth in the UK computer and video games market. UK sales of leisure software products reached an all time high in 2003, with values reaching £1.26 billion, an increase of 7.1 per cent over the previous year.

A Chinese supermarket hosted a two-day event to help promote Nintendo's oddball game device.

On November 22nd and 23rd, Nintendo held a launch event for its China-only gaming system, the iQue. It was a competition featuring Mario Kart 64 and Wave Race 64, with the winners of each receiving some iQue gear, with the grand prize winner getting something special, a framed Shigeru Miyamoto autographed picture of Mario.

Again, nothing you gamers would care about, but good to know for our industry audience.

MIDWAY GAMES ANNOUNCES NEW APPOINTMENTS TO NORTH AMERICAN MARKETING AND SALES TEAMS

Marketing, Sales, and Media Relations Appointments Bring Talent from Industry Leaders - Industry Veteran Steve Allison named Chief Marketing Officer

CHICAGO - January 7, 2004 - Midway Games Inc., a leading... Read more...

The BBC is turning their hit franchise into a set of games for PC, PS2, and GBA.

Innovative TV tournament FightBox comes to PC, PlayStation 2, and Game Boy Advance

BBC Multimedia is set to launch FightBox as a multi-format gaming title on February 6, 2004.

Based on the TV series airing on BBC Two, FightBox brings together computer gaming, Internet and TV technology to create a new entertainment format.

A state assemblyman is hoping that two new bills will keep violent games out of the hands of the kiddies.

The fight to blame videogames as the sole reason for violence among young children has no end in sight. In the state of California, State Assemblyman Leland Yee from San Francisco is introducing two new bills that he hopes will help to get M-rated games out of the hands of those who shouldn't be playing them.

Nothing too terribly interesting if you like videogames, but we thought you'd ought to know.

MIDWAY GAMES APPOINTS TWO NEW DIRECTORS TO ITS BOARD

CHICAGO - January 6, 2004 - Midway Games Inc., a leading interactive entertainment software publisher and developer, announced today the appointments of Robert N. Waxman, CPA, 67, and Jay N. Whipple III, 47, as two new independent Board directors,... Read more...

Well, sort of. Capcom has a Flash mini-game for you to try.

One of the "Capcom 5" announced alongside P.N.03, Viewtiful Joe, and Resident Evil 4, the cel-shaded thriller Killer 7 has remained the most ambiguous of the bunch. No one outside of Capcom really knows how it plays, but we do know that its story revolves around a serial killer with multiple personalities.... Read more...

The critically acclaimed adventure is now available at a reduced price on each system.

Due to the game's poor holiday sales, publisher Ubi Soft has reduced the price of Beyond Good & Evil to $19.99 on all three console platforms, half of its original MSRP. The game was released just last month, amid the torrent of software launches that always precede Christmas.

A statement from... Read more...

Pandora Tomorrow, that is. The game will automatically adjust difficulty based on what you do, says Ubi Soft.

It seems with every flashy new game that comes out, you have people complaining that it's too easy. Even with developers adding difficulty levels, you can never please anyone anymore.

In an interview with BBC Online, Ubi Soft president Yves Guillemot talked about this problem, one that a lot... Read more...

All this month, if you buy Prince of Persia you'll get Splinter Cell for free.

Ubi Soft has a deal for those still waiting on the fence about buying the excellent Prince of Persia. All through the month of January, if you buy Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, you'll get Tom Clancy's Spinter Cell for free.

Details on how exactly this will work are unclear. Ubi says that... Read more...

The Hobbit Soundtrack Available for Download

Sierra and Vivendi Universal Games have made the soundtrack for The Hobbit available to the public. You can download it from their FTP site with this link:

The Hobbit Soundtrack (MP3)

The game has some very nice music, including Celtic and styles of songs. The instrumentation includes a lot of acoustic guitar, which is quite unusual for game music. You might even hear one of these tracks on Louie FM eventually.

Well wishes from our director.

I would like to wish everyone the best on this Christmas Day. This message is a bit late if you've been celebrating Hannukah or Kwanzaa, but I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday no matter what occasion you are enjoying this time of year.

Although Planet GameCube does not take a break... Read more...

Preorder Pokémon Colosseum and get a special bonus disc!

Nintendo fans who preorder Pokémon Colosseum between February 9th and the game’s release on March 22nd will receive a bonus disc full of Pokémon goodies.

Besides giving players a preview of the GameCube game, the bonus disc will contain footage of the upcoming Pokémon movie, Pokémon: Jirachi... Read more...

Nintendo's odd little gaming device is selling well in some of China's major cities.

The iQue Player, Nintendo's crack at an anti-piratable gaming device in China, is selling well in the country that is known for producing pirated games. Major Eastern Chinese cities such as Shanghai and Guangzhou were the first to offer the product to consumers, and Nintendo wants to distribute the product further into China, eventually hoping to have the product available in "thousands of stores."

People like Silver. People like Black. Why not buy both?

DID YOU KNOW?

Nintendo Announces New, Limited-Edition, Two-Tone Game Boy Advance SP

December 18, 2003 - To celebrate the best year in the 14-year history of the Game Boy® video game system, Nintendo announces a new, limited-edition, two-tone version of the popular Game Boy® Advance SP.... Read more...

Konami takes another stab at licensed anime franchises.

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. Signs Agreement to Develop "Shaman King" Video Games

New Los Angeles-based Operation Continues to Build Repertoire of Licensed Content

LOS ANGELES, CA - December 18, 2003 - Leading Los Angeles-based videogame publisher, Konami Digital Entertainment,... Read more...

Nintendo and Panasonic say good night to the Japan-only DVD-GC hybrid.

Those interested in importing a DVD/GAME Player Q should do so immediately. Panasonic recently announced that it will no longer produce its Q DVD/VCD player, also capable of playing Nintendo GameCube games. This move is likely due to the product’s slow sales, especially after the standard GameCube price drop.

Nintendo of Europe's release schedule for 2004.

Nintendo of Europe have published their expected release schedule for GameCube and Game Boy Advance next year. Notable titles include:

GameCube

20th February 2004 - James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing - Electronic Arts

26th February 2004 - Kirby Air Ride – Nintendo

11th March 2004 - Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles – Nintendo

Huge numbers for Mario Kart and GameCube sales.

DID YOU KNOW?

November TRSTS Update

December 16, 2003 - In the race to be the best-selling video game this holiday, only one competitor can get the checkered flag. In November, that game was Mario Kart®: Double Dash!!™, exclusively for Nintendo GameCube™. According to NPDFunworld's... Read more...

See what the next VF game is going to look like with this hefty download.

The screenshots that have been floating around for this game haven't really shown what the game is all about. However, Sega-AM2 has recently added a movie to the game's webpage, and after watching it, you'll have a better understanding of what to expect from VFCG.

The trailer serves as the story... Read more...