'video Games'' Playstation 2 History Article

While Saint Nick won't climb down the chimney for another month, video game companies have been battling it out on the hardware and software front like frenetic elves on a Yuletide mission to lure gaming afficionados.

She says online opportunities include giving gamers real-time chat, online tournaments, and eventually offer music and movies to the consoles.

So what's the deal with going online? Microsoft, for its part, is rolling out the Xbox live subscription service on Nov. 15 (the day of its first birthday); Nintendo released a modern add-on for its GameCube late last month; while Sony launched a network adapter (Ethernet/modern) for its PlayStation 2 back in August.

While online gaming has been around for a while, it's now getting a lot more play, says Ryan Mugford, group marketing manager for Xbox Canada. Mugford says eventually nearly every Xbox game will let players compete online, where you can "trash-talk with your friends and be able to interact with buddies."

Calling the online concept the "virtual couch," he says the idea to pursue the market came about because it ranks high on the garners wish list. Through a broadband connection, gamers can play multiplayer Xbox games with other gamers everywhere on the Internet.

And while Microsoft's strategy involves a subscription service, Sony, for its part, is rolling out a per-title basis, whereby third-party developers can charge players who want to log onto their game-specific servers.

Certainly, the biggest game announcement for Sony this season is the online strategy, says Ian Jackson, director of Sony Computer Entertainment Canada in Toronto.

"We are now selling a network adapter to the consumer for $, which allows the consumer for the first time to enjoy PlayStation 2 games in an online environment.

"It's a network adapter (that comes with a set-up disc) that lets you go out over any internet provider at no additional charge to a particular Web site. It's very user-friendly and a cost efficient way for consumers to play Playstation 2 online with other gamers -- in the neighbourhood or throughout North America."

Socom: . Navy Seals strategy game for PlayStation 2 is the first title to offer the online feature. Twisted Metal: Black and ATE Offroad Fury 2 will follow suit in the online realm. "A number of our key franchises will be available both in a standalone version (play them as a single user) or take them into the online environment."

Jackson says one of Sony's main attack plans is to prepare consumers for the future. "When they're ready to migrate to online gaming, we're telling them today we have the solution for them . . . we've always put the cart before the horse: we've delivered it methodically, we've delivered the console that's going to do all of this great technology, and as time goes on we'll continue to launch different technologies to go with the PlayStation 2."

The future of gaming goes beyond the box, he adds. "We see this unit becoming the main entertainment device that will be used in the household by the family, whether you are playing audio CDs, whether you are doing DVD movies, whether you are playing Playstation 2 games, whether you're going online -- this unit will be the one that can do that. It is very versatile in what it will do, and it has a lot of expandability built into it." Indeed, IDC says network-enabled consumer electronics will be one of the most important new developments over the next five years.

And while Nintendo has been cautiously dipping its toe into the online market, the company has decided to also play the cyber-space game.

"Without question from a players standpoint, online gaming appears to be exciting, innovative, inter-dynamic to the console gaming business -- and it's all true," says Ron Bertram, vice-president and general manager of Nintendo Canada in Vancouver. "But from a bottom line business perspective, it's prospects may be somewhat more chilling. At Nintendo we've been intrigued for a long time about the prospects of online gaming."

Players want the thrill of testing their skills with strangers, he says. "So it could be that players decide that they want to play against unseen opponents in unseen lands, versus playing against your buddies on the couch in the basement. And perhaps the unseen opponents is worth the cost of extra subscription fees."

Software wars

And while online gaming is where it's at, IDC's Olhava says the "real money" today is in the software. Now that the hardware market has flattened out and is declining, the big news centres all around content, she says.

Nintendo expects to have the hottest Christmas season in its history, said Bertram at the company's pre-Christmas launch event held in Toronto late last month.

Over the next two months, Nintendo is going to sell 40 per cent of its business, he says. "That adds up to $400 million in retail sales over the next 60 days." More than 180 games are expected to be available on the GameCube this holiday season.

The company wants to shed its squeaky clean image of catering just to kids, and go after the massive mature gamer market, which accounts for over 55 per cent of all gamers.

The video game business in 2002 in Canada is going to generate about $1 billion worth of retail sales, Bertram says. "This is the first time ever we've done that, and that's up approximately 50 per cent from last year. So in these dismal economic conditions that we face, the video game business is very vibrant."

Microsoft is banking on its $299 Xbox system that includes two bundled games: Sega CT 2002 and Jet Set Radio Future. More than 200 games are slated for the Xbox this Christmas season.

Sony, meanwhile, is pushing new titles along with new genres, including the action-adventure game Ratchet & Clank.