If the game of the year has been Pokemon (see below) then the event of the year was the launch of Sony's new PlayStation console, the PS2. In what cynics would say was a carefully orchestrated marketing ploy, Sony announced only a limited number of consoles destined for Europe and the United States (500,000 each). The result was unruly queues and ugly scenes when the consoles finally went on sale.

Sony explains that the penury is due to the console's phenomenal success in Japan where, with over 1,000,000 units sold since its launch in March 2000 component stocks were severely depleted

The lack of machines and an already delayed launch is bad news not just for game players. In both the United Kingdom and France demand will certainly exceed supply, so a shortage of consoles will mean less revenue for the retailers as well as the game makers at the most lucrative time of the year.

The arrival of the PS2 is also bad news for rival constructor Sega, whose Dreamcast console launched in 1999, has only just reached a million sales world-wide. Innovative in its way the Dreamcast console comes equipped with a modem, opening up the possibility of playing games over the Internet and generating another source of income. (See Online Gaming below) A Dreamcast does not however, allow the playing of DVD's, (the PS2 does), and with DVD players on sale for around the price of a PS2, Sony seems to have positioned itself very well in the market place.

Not only that, the PS2 is backwardly compatible, which means that the large range of games designed for the PS1 is still accessible. The PS2 is also equipped with USB ports, which can connect keyboards, scanners and eventually digital cameras. There is no Internet connectivity as yet but accessories will be made available in 2001 according to Sony.

Microsoft boxing clever?

If the launch of the PlayStation 2 seems a little rushed it is not surprising, for a new, and serious competitor in the game console market, Microsoft, is putting the finishing touches to its X-Box. The expected launch date is September 2001

Microsoft's position is strangely like that of Sony in the early 90's when the Japanese firm first launched itself onto the games market.

All the same, Microsoft has indicated its interest in the games market for some time. As well as producing impressive software including Flight simulator and Strategy games, it also manufactures hardware accessories like joysticks and PC speakers. Some doubts have been raised about the seriousness of Microsoft's console but the firm from Redmond does possess some important advantages. For partners it has a best in class hardware platform with Intel for the processor and nVidia for the all important graphics card. With such industry heavyweights combining with Microsoft's marketing know-how and financial clout the X-Box could be a winner.

Pokemon to the rescue

Microsoft will not be alone in launching a new games console in 2001. Nintendo also hope to unveil a new console, as it is badly in need of a replacement for its now outdated and out-performed N64.

Called the Nintendo Gamecube it resembles the X-box in conception but will come equipped with proprietary DVD to avoid copying and, according to the company, it will be competitively priced.

Nintendo can probably afford it, as it has been behind one of the most phenomenal merchandising successes of the end of the century thanks to its cult game, Pokemon. Pokemon (a contraction of Pocket Monsters), was introduced three years ago as a game on Nintendo's pocket player Gameboy. Since then, its notoriety has grown phenomenally. Films, TV cartoon series, four more video games, playing cards, all sorts of toys, Pokemon has generated a three billion dollar market in the USA alone and over 65 million video games had been sold world-wide up to July 2000.

Pikachu, the best known representative of the Pocket Monsters series, can be seen everywhere and he (she or it), has now joined the illustrious icons of the gaming world along with Mario and Lara Croft.

What Nintendo needs to do is convert its dominance of the portable game player market, which is played primarily by younger children into the more lucrative, young adult, console market, now dominated by Sony.

As the first part of this strategy, a new portable player is now ready, the Game Boy Advance. Players will be able to link two devices and battle each other. Compatibility is also programmed between the new players and the future Gamecube console, allowing the transfer of games and the use of the Game Boy Advance as a control pad. By merging the two, Nintendo hopes to keep its young players a little longer.

Apart from the unlikely named WonderSwan from Bandai in Japan, Nintendo has no competition for handheld games, unless of course one includes games designed for mobile telephones. Already in Japan, I-mode phones offer a number of games and puzzles, while in Europe, Wap enabled phones boast network games with high score prizes. Nintendo should also keep an eye on Microsoft who may well offer a wireless connection to its X-Box.

The game is far from over.

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