Late Night Mini-Consoling

Sony has been promising a "spring 2006" PlayStation 3 launch date for many months now, but as that vague date grows closer the company has still yet to fully reveal its next generation console. A Reuters article published today suggests that Sony has been having trouble nailing down various technical specifications of the machine, resulting in delayed development of both hardware and games. "We're waiting for [Blu-ray specs] until the last possible minute, but the launch could be pushed back if they're not decided soon," said a Sony spokesperson. KBC Securities' Hiroshi Kamide said, "No one is seriously thinking a spring release is realistic any more." It is more likely the PS3 will launch in Japan this summer. Hitting shelves in North America before the holiday season is also crucial, with Europe getting the machine some time in 2007.

The Reuters article comes only days after a Merril Lynch research report estimating that initial manufacturing costs for the PS3 might approach $900. In response to that report, SCEI's Kei Sakaguchi confirmed, "There is no change in our original plan to release the console in spring 2006." The statement is slightly out of step with the above quoted Sony spokesperson, who also said, "We're aiming for spring, but we haven't announced specific regions."

Sony stock was down 4.4% today after the reports. It closed down 3.6% at 5,300 yen ($44.79).

In an interview on SpikeTV's Game Head conducted by Geoff Keighley, Nintendo marketing veep Reggie Fils-Aime revealed that Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (GCN) will be launching even later than we had most recently believed. He also confirmed (yet again) that it is in fact a GameCube title, so stop with the rumors already. "It's coming out in the fall. It's coming out on GameCube," stated Fils-Aime. (Thanks Gamecloud)

It also looks like those rumors about Twilight Princess utilizing the Revolution controller can finally be put to rest thanks to an Engadget interview. Fils-Aime gave an inconclusive response to the question in the Game Head episode, but was more direct with Engadget. When asked whether any GameCube games would use the controller when played with the Revolution's backwards compatibility, he answered, "Essentially what we're saying is that Revolution titles are the only ones that will leverage the new controller." And, as we all should know by now, Twilight Princess is still a GameCube game.

IGN reports that Call of Duty developer Infinity Ward is hiring for an untitled project in development for Xbox 360 and PS3. The news isn't particularly surprising, given Call of Duty 2's status as bestselling Xbox 360 launch title. However, it is unknown whether the title is part of the Call of Duty franchise or a new property.

One of the most common responses from Nintendo executives when interviewers comment on the company's reliance on its long standing franchises is that there are brand new properties in the works. In the same Engadget interview mentioned above, Reggie Fils-Aime stated that we will be seeing new Nintendo franchises on Revolution. When asked if it will be "as big as a Nintendogs or a Zelda," he answered, "That is certainly the goal, but you'll have to tell me when you see it at E3."

In third party news, Fils-Aime also stated that over a thousand Revolution dev kits have been sent out to developers.

Mark Ecko has some pointed words to say about the various reactions to The Collective's Mar Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure.