Dragon Warrior VIII Ships Three Million

Square Enix broke its previous record in Japan for units shipped for a game. Dragon Warrior VIII (Dragon Quest in Japan) shipped an outstanding three million units for Japan's November 27 release date, beating the previous mark of 2.4 million units for Final Fantasy X. Dragon Quest is so popular in Japan that it is illegal for Square Enix to release the game on weekdays, because school kids skip classes just to purchase the RPG.

What Is The Most Violent Game For 2004?

According to the ICCR (Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility), Doom 3 is on top of the worst games to buy younger children this 2004 holiday season. The games on the following list were based on their violent and adult content within the software. So, if you have an 8-year child, do not buy these games listed below says the ICCR.

1. Doom 3
2. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
3. Gunslinger Girls 2
4. Half-Life 2
5. Halo 2
6. Hitman: Blood Money (although this game won't be released until spring 2005)
7. Manhunt
8. Mortal Kombat Deception
9. Postal 2
10. Shadow Heart

Nintendo DS Demand Overwhelming

If you have not reserved a Nintendo DS by now, it is unlikely you will be able to purchase one on launch day November 21. Demand has exceeded Nintendo's expectations for the new portable system. Nintendo has begun manufacturing in a third factory to boost the number of units produced per day. Most retailers that have accepted preorders before have stopped taking orders because their initial shipments have been sold out (only 300,000 units will be available on launch day). Look for some steep prices on the Nintendo DS over the next few days.

Final Fantasy XII for the Playstation 2 has been delayed again. Originally set for a summer 2004 release, Square Enix then delayed the game until winter 2004 or spring 2005. Now the publisher simply states the game will be released in 2005 after March sometime.

New Game Cases For The Nintendo DS

Unlike past Game Boy game cases that use cardboard boxes, Nintendo has unveiled that the new Nintendo DS games will use DVD-style cases. The new cases will be approximately the same size as a Game Boy Advance game case, but thinner. Obviously the new DVD-style DS cases will help to better protect the portable games and manuals.

Gran Turismo 4 has been delayed. The game was to be released by holiday 2004. Polyphony Digital (game developer) needs to make a few more adjustments to the game, but the online playablilty feature still will not be included. On the plus side, Gran Turismo 4 will now feature 700 cars in the game instead of the previously mentioned 500. Gran Turismo 4 is now set for a first quarter 2005 release.

Play N64 Games On Your GameCube?

Nintendo has an intriguing poll on their website www.nintendo.com. Nintendo is asking gamers if they are interested in a N64 adapter for the GameCube (allowing Nintendo 64 games to be played through the Cube, much like the Game Boy Player allows all Game Boy games to be played through the GameCube console).

In other gaming news, Manny Ramirez will be the cover athlete for EA's MVP Baseball 2005 game next spring. Although Ramirez failed to capture the American League MVP award (Vladimir Guerrero won the honor), Manny was the MVP of the World Series.

At this point in time it looks as if Tekken 5 for the home market will only hit the Playstation 2 console, but that could change in the future.

The Legend Of Zelda (GameCube Sequel) Release Date

Nintendo has officially announced the release date for the new GameCube Zelda game. Nintendo plans on releasing the new Zelda adventure in the second quarter of 2005. That timeframe is months ahead of the expected release for the 2005 holidays.

Of course, Nintendo is known for many game delays for its big franchise titles, so we will have to see if Nintendo can actually get the new GameCube Zelda game in our hands before the 2005 holidays.

Halo 2 Sales Figures

Halo 2 has sold over 2.4 million units so far, producing revenue of $125 million. Considering Spider-Man 2 (the movie) grossed about $115 million during its opening weekend, Halo 2 seems to be quite the success already. Factor in that the original Halo to date has only grossed $141 million in sales the last three years, you can now truly understand why there was so much hype for this game.

Halo 2 is still far away from the unofficial best-selling game of all time (based on sales dollars). Super Mario 64 grossed over $308 million during its game life span.

So far, the maximum number of simultaneous players on Xbox Live playing Halo 2 was a little under 90,000 gamers. For comparison on the PC, there are 100,000 players online at any one time playing Counter-Strike (PC's most popular online shooter).

In other news, Konami has confirmed that there will be more games in the Metal Gear Solid franchise. Hideo Kojima (the series creator) has already stated that Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater will be the last game he directs and brings the current arc for the series to a close. Future games will take a different approach to the storyline. No release date yet for the next Metal Gear Solid game.

Gran Turismo 4 will not be online playable, but it will be the PS2's largest game based on data. Gran Turismo 4, with its 700 cars and 50 race tracks, will fill an entire dual-layer DVD (9 GB).

Halo 2 Xbox Live Servers

Did you know that some 7,000 retailers opened early on November 9 for the release of the mega-anticipated Xbox game Halo 2? Over 49,000 Halo 2 gamers were playing simultaneously on Xbox Live at one point on November 9th, making it the most played game on Xbox Live yet. What is striking about this number is that many gamers have not had a chance to buy or play the game as some have yet to get home from work.

Video Games For Holiday 2004

If you are a gamer, then this Christmas will be heaven for you. Some of the biggest sequels in video game history are set to be released on all three major home consoles. The Xbox will have Halo 2 and Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords. Playstation 2 will get Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater and the guaranteed mega-million seller Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Heck, even the GameCube pulls through with quality titles like Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and Paper Mario 2 (officially titled Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door).

Of course some of these games could be delayed (Nintendo has a habit of delaying their games to only make them even better). But just look at the quality of these games compared to last year's offerings. Remember, if you were an Xbox fan for the holiday 2003 season, you know what it's like to every major release delayed until 2004 (and gamers are stil waiting on Doom 3).

Speaking of Xbox, Fable has finally been released after years of development and the word is the game is not "the greatest RPG game of all time" like the game designer promised. Reviews I have read say that the game is solid, but is no where close to being at the level of a Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior game. Maybe in 2012 when Fable 2 is released on Xbox 4, the game will be better.