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Shazzan The
Impossibles Max Fleisher's Superman (a.k.a. Roulette) The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest Robotech Sailor Moon DragonBall Z Filmation Superman Batman Superfriends
ReBoot
Ronin Warriors G-Force Powerpuff Girls Batman: The Animated Series Gundam Wing Tenchi Muyo! Universe in Tokyo Superman Outlaw Star Big O CardCaptors Mobile Suit Gundam
O8th
MS Team DragonBall Batman Beyond Gundam 0080 Zoids: Zero Hamtaro Zoids: Chaotic Century Guardian Force G Gundam He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Transformers:
Armada
G.I. Joe .hack//Sign Yu Yu Hakusho Rurouni Kenshin QuickTime .mov MOV AVI .avi MPEG .mpg Movies movie Videos Clips Sounds articles rants essays images files CNX inner
circle
cn2 revolution Japan japanese multimedia saban funimation toei graz harmony gold mainframe Tyler Zogg TylerL
Apparently, there is never enough gossip and rumor surrounding the pending future of the beloved software maker Sega Corp. Yesterday, with its stocks suddenly jumping, Sega again sought cover under several new allegations of huge deals offered by Microsoft Corp or Electronic Arts.
Last night, the Asian Wall Street Journal reported that Sega's stock jumped 15% thanks to an insider leak that Microsoft Corp. and Electronic Arts are making independent bids for the famous software company. Today, reports from the Nihon Keizai Shimbun indicate that Sega is negotiating with EA, which is considering purchasing a 22% share into the Sega, thus enabling EA to share in development and distribution resources.
Two other news agencies, The Nikkei Sangyo newspaper and the Nikkei Business magazine, have penned articles that CSK President Masahiro Aozono had instigated the Sega-Sammy merger, fueling pundits of the deal who have speculated that dissent is growing within Sega since the merger plans were suddenly announced February 13. Before Sega's stocks jumped, Sega's shares had lost nearly a third of their value as a result of the Sammy-Sega merger.
"It's unclear whether Sega's say was included in the process," said analyst Nomura Securities Co. Yuta Sakurai. "We can't completely rule out the possibility of a sale of Sega's consumer-game business to a third party."
Sammy representatives told reporters in a prepared statement that the two companies play on going through with the merger as planned.
Both Sega and EA representatives were unable to comment.
"For Microsoft and Electronic Arts, there's quite a lot of synergy if they were to buy Sega," explained Toru Hashizume, an analyst at Tokyo Mitsubishi Asset Management Ltd. "Microsoft needs big software titles for its Xbox."
In the past four months, Sega has lost 51% of its value, due to downgraded value forecasts, and the company has continued to experience sales troubles as its transformed from a hardware manufacturer of the Dreamcast to a independent third-party publisher. Friday, Sega of America cut about 90 staff members from its San Francisco offices, a 20% cut.
If the negotiations are true, both Microsoft and EA could benefit from deals with Sega in different ways. Microsoft's intentions have been clear since day one. It has pined for Japanese developers for more than a year now, and would love more than anything to have the clout of a well-loved, established Japanese company under its belt. To date its offers have been quietly denied.
Meanwhile EA has only one country left to dominate, which is Japan. Since Square's merger with Enix, EA's relationship officially ends in March 2003, leaving it high and dry in the Land of the Rising Sun. If Sega executives are truly unhappy with the Sammy merger, which has yet to be approved by both boards, EA could forge a relationship with Sega and/or Sammy, depending on what happens.
Or something bigger might happen. Or the Sega-Sammy deal might go through. It appears that something is taking place, but none of the significant parties have confirmed anything, nor are they officially talking. _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
If you have any common sense(and a PS2) you will go buy Xenosaga. I've been waiting so long for this and...why am I still typing...
*runs off to go play more* _________________ There is limited intelligence in the galaxy, but the stupidity of the universe is infinite.
Sun Mar 02, 2003 12:12 pm
Cooolcorey
Joined: Nov 08, 2002
Post subject:
I sooo want to play that. I just need a job to get a PS2...
Sun Mar 02, 2003 2:33 pm
Beatdiggga
Joined: Nov 07, 2002
Post subject:
Well, you don't actually play it. Most of it is a movie. You watch it.
I'm worried about Sega merging with Electronic Arts, since EA refuses to publish M rated games. (Remember Thrill Kill?)
Sun Mar 02, 2003 2:45 pm
Spookmonkey
Joined: Nov 07, 2002
Post subject:
So Sega and Microsoft seem to be the best alternitive to Sega and Sammy. The Sammy/Sega thing actually reminds me a bit of the AOL/Time Warner merger. _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
Well, you don't actually play it. Most of it is a movie. You watch it.
I'm worried about Sega merging with Electronic Arts, since EA refuses to publish M rated games. (Remember Thrill Kill?)
I'd rather Sega merge with EA than Microsoft. I want my Sega games on a system I own.
Sun Mar 02, 2003 4:45 pm
gfpaperboy22
Joined: Oct 31, 2002
Post subject:
Cooolcorey wrote:
I sooo want to play that. I just need a job to get a PS2...
Just save up 2 pay checks and go to your local pawn shop and pick up a cheap PS2 for $141.50. I did and it works just fine.
BTW, has anyone else played .hack//infection yet?
Mon Mar 03, 2003 11:24 am
Spookmonkey
Joined: Nov 07, 2002
Post subject:
Cooolcorey wrote:
Beatdiggga wrote:
Well, you don't actually play it. Most of it is a movie. You watch it.
I'm worried about Sega merging with Electronic Arts, since EA refuses to publish M rated games. (Remember Thrill Kill?)
I'd rather Sega merge with EA than Microsoft. I want my Sega games on a system I own.
EA just wants Sega because it's their biggest competitor for their sports games. That's all. I really think they would just turn Sega into EA Japan. Microsoft on the otherhand needs big name 1st party games. If Sega goes with MS, then once again Sonic and Mario can face off on their own systems and all shall be right in the world. Sega should never ever have made a single game for nintendo, it's just not right. _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
So would EA Japan publish M rated games, like Shinobi 2?
Mon Mar 03, 2003 4:23 pm
Spookmonkey
Joined: Nov 07, 2002
Post subject:
probably not. I'd imagine they'de make Sega take their exact practices and so no. Hell, I'd imagine that the name Sega would be no more if they got merged into EA. You really want ot play Shining Force IV by EA... no, never will happen. Sega will turn to shit. MS will at least let them do their thing their own way with very little interferance, if any at all. It would mean no shinobi V (not an m rated shinobi anyway), no gungrave II, and absolutely no house of the dead IV. _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
MMOG network solution provider Zona today announced that its Terazona middleware has been chosed as the MMOG network engine for Capcom’s upcoming Ghouls N’ Ghosts MMO title on both cross-platforms and consoles. Under the agreement Game Factory, a developer will be incorporating Terazona into the game.
"We are very proud to be associated with one of the classic game series of all time," states Monte Singman, CEO of Zona, Inc. "Ghouls N' Ghosts was technically and visually ahead of its time when released by Capcom in 1988. Very soon thousands of concurrent online game players will enjoy the same kind of fun video game entertainment within a fast, seamless, and reliable game play environment."
"Terazona is simply the most complete solution on the market today," adds Charlotte Chiang, President of GameFactory Digital Entertainment. "With Terazona, Game Factory will be able to focus on what we do the best - make games, and we can shorten our time-to-market, and reduce the development cost and risk. Terazona is the best choice for us."
"As a member of Capcom, I am really pleased and excited to hear that talented creators of Game Factory are going to work on MMOG based on our `Ghouls 'n Ghosts,'" said Yoshiki Okamoto, Chief Operating Officer Senior Managing Director Production Studios, Capcom. "I am looking forward to playing MMOG version of `Ghouls 'n Ghosts' by Game Factory. Bet it's gonna be a legend!"
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Ubi Soft, under its Montreal production studios, today announced that an all-new game in the Prince Of Persia series is in development, called Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. In development for a Q4 2003 release on all platforms and created by Jordan Mechner, the new game has players taking on the role of a prince. Playing as the prince, after the prince’s father invades the palace of the Maharajah, players use a dagger to release the Sands of Time. Upon releasing the sand, players, alongside a new ally, set out to recapture the sands to restore peace to the land.
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Nintendo of Europe today announced that it will be co-publishing Soul Calibur 2 in Europe alongside Namco for the GameCube. Slated for release in the region during Fall 2003, the co-publishing deal will have Nintendo Europe handling distribution of the game across the continent. _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
This session, with Jason Rubin (Naughty Dog), Ted Price (Insomniac), Cliff Bleszinski (Epic), and Christopher Cross (EA Games) focused on the pros and cons of designing sequel titles. Being the creators of Crash, Spyro, Unreal, and Medal of Honor respectively, there was much the experienced creators could yield to the audience in this roundtable discussion on the topic of crafting a sequel. As D.I.C.E. is geared more towards the developer, the creators debated a large number of topics based around past performance.
On character development, Ted Price noted Insomniac's hesitance to change Spyro as a character -- to let him grow up at all. However, we noted that developers shouldn't be as worried to let characters evolve, especially in character-driven franchises. The group of sequel-obsessed leaders also talked about Oddworld's decision to create the story for up to five titles in advance. Price agreed that if you have the foresight to do something like that, you certainly should. However, Rubin disagreed and noted his hesitation to lock his team into an idea set so prematurely. From Jak and Daxter, he said, he learned so much that he would hate to have to ignore in any way because of something like a time period. Likewise, Cliff Bleszinski said he was impressed by the audaciousness of the concept, but that he is also too worried about the changing market or even hardware changes to do something like that.
The panel then moved on to consider the topic of "episodic content." This is a notion that has been floating around the industry for some time where, for instance, you might release the first four levels of your game six months into development, perhaps leaving the gamer at a cliffhanger moment. Another three to six months down the road, you would give the gamer another supplement in the ongoing epic. Much like reading several chapters of the book, you wouldn't experience the whole game in one sitting, but rather progressively. The four creators talked about the huge financial roadblocks that stood before such a development model, and all agreed that such a vision was at least several years away if not much more. Rubin gave the example that his animators were creating 30 seconds of animation per week for storyline cut-scenes, while something like that only progresses five seconds a week at computer graphics behemoth Pixar. Still, that leaves Naughty Dog with only two minutes of animation per month -- hardly enough staff to progress a story episodically. He's convinced it will happen some day, though, but it will be a big undertaking.
At the tail-end of the seminar, there was a Q&A held with the audience. One of the more revealing questions posed from an attendee was the following:
Q: I was wondering if you could talk about keeping an eye on what the market wants. At the seminar last year, I got the impression you thought that Jak and Daxter had underperformed because the taste and trends have changed in the last few years. How has that informed your process for this new Jak & Daxter?
Jason Rubin: I can't really go into what we're doing on the new title -- shortly you'll hear about that. There's no question that the second product we're doing is very different and reacts to the market. Keep in mind Jak & Daxter has passed two million units sold worldwide, so it wasn't exactly a failure. But, it didn't do as well as the Crash titles, and we were trying for Jak and Daxter to be a little more mature, be a little older. Because we knew every year, everybody gets older. At 33 I'm right at that edge of growing up with videogames. If you're 40 you didn't really grow up with them, you came into them. If you're younger you could grow up with them straight through. I'm still playing -- 30 year olds are still playing. So, we know that the average age is going up. We didn't push it far enough, is my opinion, with Jak and Daxter. And we are reacting to that now.
Overall, the event did provide some insight into what developers are facing as they create sequels for this current generation. Everything from market perception to changing hardware makes it a more difficult process than it might seem. In fact, gamer perception is often far too critical and often totally unjust, the panel agreed. Cliff Bleszinski told a very interesting story where Epic released an Unreal Tournament 2003 patch and fans raved about the positive tweaks it made, helping to better balance the weaponry. The catch was, there were no changes made to the way the weapons handled -- it was all placebo. "You have to take things with a grain of salt," noted Bleszinksi. "You have to listen, but you have to be careful." _________________ "Veni. Vedi. Spooki." - Julius Caesar
I came. I saw. I spooked.
Shortly after Mad Catz announced that it had acquired the GameShark brand from InterAct, Electro Source, which does business as Pelican Accessories, announced that it had filed for legal action against the company and Fire International. Today, in closing that chapter, Mad Catz today announced that a Los Angeles Superior Court judge has denied Pelican’s request to halt the upcoming launch of GameShark later this month on next-generation consoles.
Morris Perlis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz Interactive, Inc., stated "We are delighted by the Los Angeles Superior Court's ruling. We have always believed that Electro Source's action was brought solely to intimidate our retail partners and today's Court decision eliminates any uncertainty with retailers and consumers alike as to whether GameShark will ship on time."
Jason Cooper, President of Fire International, Ltd., added, "The Court's decision confirms our belief that this is simply a case where Electro Source is trying to obtain a result in Court that they could not achieve in the marketplace."
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Here's the XBox Live Calendar
Available Now
MechAssault Downloadable Content
"Hell's Kitchen," "Raven," "Stone Cold," "Corvus"
Toe Jam and Earl 3 Downloadable Content
"GeekJam," "Hades Environment," "Funkadelic Environment," "Suteki," "EarlBot"
MX Superfly Downloadable Content
"Mall Jump Key," "Backyard Bash Key," "Bubba and Armor," "Tank and Enforcer," "Joe Bob and Ambush," "Lynn and Islander," "Crystal and Storm," "Amber and Discotecha," "Bones and Pharaoh," "Baller and Swoosh," "Dynamite and Vega"
Today a Sega spokesman told investors that Sega has no plans to sell their shares to any company besides Sammy, and that rumors of a Sega-EA/Sega-Microsoft merger are completley unfounded in reality. Sega's stock dropped 4 points in the morining in response, but has now leveled off.
And cheers from Sega fans flooded the countryside.
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