There are two ways rumors get started. The first is simple: people involved leak the information or accidentally post it in public places. The second? Analyst and general media celebrity Michael Pachter. He says things, and apparently this makes them viable rumors. This week we’ve decided to come up with our own baseless speculation, Pachter-style.

Current score

Andrew Passafiume: +340

Graham Russell: +109

Eric Schabel: +65

Shawn Vermette: +185

Successor to Wii, PS3 or 360 revealed by or at E3 2011

I mean, it could happen, right? Seems like it’s about time. We haven’t heard anything about production at any plants, talks with chip manufacturers or the other things we could have gotten wind of. Nope, we just think this could transpire.

Andrew: I think this is partly true. I think we’ll be hearing about a new console from Nintendo relatively soon, but I think the earliest we’ll hear from Microsoft and Sony is 2012. Normally it wouldn’t be like this, but I think this console generation is a lot different. Developers are still trying to get the hand of these current systems. 15%

Graham: It seems like the antics of last year’s E3 were those of a late-system market, with peripherals dominating the conversation. If one of them fails (and it seems like that may be the case now), I’d think it’d be time to take your ball and go home, living to fight another generation. We should also keep in mind that the 360 is the oldest of the three out there. Of course, there’s not much potential left in the Wii, either: what do they do now, release a fourth Mario game? There may not be much left in the pipeline for them, but they haven’t lost steam in the marketplace. An early indicator with that: watch to see how much Wii-3DS connectivity there is. If there’s a big push, we have six more weeks of winter.  60%

Shawn: I think there’s a strong likelihood that Nintendo will introduce their next console by then, though I strongly doubt Microsoft or Sony does. Nintendo has known, or should have known, since they released the Wii that it would have a shorter lifespan than the 360 or PS3. Considering that they’ll have finished rolling out the 3DS by then, I can see them stealing the show with a new console.70%

OnLive to shut down by end of 2011

The MicroConsole has just released, and we’re already talking about its demise? Yep. Because it totally could happen.

Andrew: So far, it seems like OnLive isn’t doing that great. Most people seem to think the service isn’t too great, and I personally never saw the point of it. Seeing it shut down next year really wouldn’t surprise me. 75%

Graham: The company has existed through years of no income, and now they’re finally making some. It may not be very much, but I think it definitely has some potential in areas of low income but solid infrastructure, such as urban areas in developing countries. There’s one thing that could totally turn them around, though: a solid exclusive. 50% 

Shawn: Well, I’ve been a member of OnLive since it launched, and I’ve yet to see any reason to actually use it. Sure, it would allow me to play PC games I otherwise couldn’t play on my weak laptop, but without a serious discount on prices, I see no reason to actually spend money there. Why pay just as much for what is arguably a rental service as I could to own the game through Steam or Gamestop? Going out of business seems like an inevitability for OnLive, I just don’t know it if will happen in 2011 or 2012. 65% 

New NBA Jam game to release in 2011

We here like NBA Jam. EA likes making games into annual franchises. That’s about as far as we thought this through.

Andrew: I don’t think NBA Jam will sell nearly as well to warrant a sequel on any of the major platforms. It’s good they brought it back, but I doubt we’ll ever see another NBA Jam for quite some time. I’m sure EA would rather focus on their second try at Elite anyway. 30%

Graham: I think that, had EA not totally bungled the launch of this year’s game, it’s entirely possible that it could have gotten the momentum to get the standard EA “we could release a roster patch but that wouldn’t make us as much money so let’s make another full game” approach. Now it’s tough to say. But yes, I would buy it. 50% 

Shawn: I don’t see it happening as a stand alone product again, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a new PSN or XBLA version of NBA Jam next year, especially if EA continues to have issues with their NBA Live/Elite/whatever-they-are-going-to-call-it-next series. 60% 

Game no one remembers naming Game of the Year to get a Game of the Year edition in 2011

How many games can be Game of the Year at the same time, anyway?

Andrew: “Game of the Year” editions of games usually only happen with games that have sold incredibly well and have a decent amount of DLC support. It’s kind of unclear whether a game we’ll collectively forget will actually get a re-release like this. 50%

Graham: I just did a quick count, and I can find ten games in the past three years that had “Game of the Year” editions. That seems like seven too many, doesn’t it? I mean, anyone can dig up a site somewhere that’ll name it Game of the Year, but you have to draw the line somewhere. Call it “Ultimate Edition” or “Platinum Edition” or whatever, but calling it “Game of the Year edition” means there’s some sort of consensus. 50% 

Shawn: There’s so many places that give out ‘Game of the Year” awards lately, that I’d be really surprised if a game that ‘no one’ has awarded that title to, had enough DLC and sales to get a Game of the year edition…though now that I think about it, Dragon Age 2 comes out next year… 30% 

This week we cover the revival of two franchises in the US, and the possible milking of another.

Current score

Andrew Passafiume: +340

Graham Russell: +109

Eric Schabel: +65

Shawn Vermette: +185

Microsoft working on new Project Gotham Racing

Ever since Activision bought Bizarre Creations in 2007, Microsoft has been sitting on their PGR series. Considering how well-received and popular the previous games in the series were, it just doesn’t make sense for Microsoft to stop making them just because the studio that historically makes them can’t anymore. That said, is Microsoft getting ready to revive it with a new entry?

Andrew: The Project Gotham Racing series has been pretty successful for Microsoft, possibly even more so than their Forza games. I think a new racing title is just what Microsoft needs, and I think with the right studio, they could bring the franchise back. And with no big racing titles on the horizon in 2011, it would be the perfect time to release it. However, I can also see them focusing their efforts on the next Forza game (which seems like it might include Kinect support as well). 80%

Graham: That’s a tough one. 2011 looks like a good time to release a racer (unlike the too-crowded 2010), and Microsoft doesn’t have Halo and Fable to ride them out next year, so it’s worth trying some things. That said, they seem to have focused their efforts on Forza, and is there room for an arcade-but-still-realistic racing game in today’s market? I’ll have to push.  50%

Shawn: I actually haven’t played a single game in the Project Gotham Racing series, though I picked up PGR 3 for $5 awhile ago. That said, it is one of Microsoft’s top first-party franchises, and to keep it garaged this long is unusual. The lack of top tier racing games after GT5’s release this month tells me that the time is right for it to make an appearance once again.85%

Sledgehammer Games working on sci-fi Call of Duty

We know two things regarding Sledgehammer Game’s current assignment. First, that they are working on an offshoot of the Call of Duty franchise. Second, that it is supposed to be an ‘action adventure’ game, rather than a pure military shooter. That said, is Activision truly preparing to go head to head with the other 800 lb gorilla in the industry? Rumors have it that the Sledgehammer Call of Duty entry may have a sci-fi setting which could potentially set it up for a battle against Halo for sales.

Andrew: We’re apparently getting at least one new Call of Duty game next year, and if the cycle continues, it would be an Infinity Ward project, despite what happened to the studio this year. Modern Warfare 3 is the obvious choice for next year’s title, but it seems like Activision might want to release multiple games a year. Rumors have also been floating around about Infinity Ward wanting to make a futuristic Call of Duty game, so at this point it’s pretty hard to tell who will be doing what with the franchise. Although, if anything, taking the series in this direction might just be what the series needs to keep it from getting stale. 50%

Graham: Sci-fi has a lot of possibilities. It could be an exaggerated Modern Warfare, set on Earth in the near-future with crazy weapons. It could be a deep space drama like Mass Effect. There could be time travel. (Please let there be time travel. As long as the game’s better than Darkest of Days.) So why not? If they’re developing a spinoff, it may as well have some nonexistent tech in the mix. 70% 

Shawn: We know that Sledgehammer Games is making a CoD game, and there’s been rumors flying for a long time about a sci-fi Call of Duty…would there really be two different CoD games in development that are NOT Modern Warfare or the Treyarch series? Knowing Activision, it is possible. However, I think it is more likely to be the Sledgehammer Games entry, if any at all. And I have to say that there is room on my gaming shelf for both Halo and CoD in Space. 65% 

XSEED to announce US publishing deal for a Tales Of title by end of 2011

It’s been awhile since a Tales title has made it stateside, Tales of Vesperia in August 2008 was the last one. That said, there’s a rabid fan base in the US for that series that has been waiting for any announcement of another game making its way over here. XSEED has publicly said they are interested in publishing a Tales game in the US. They’ve published games over here for Namco Bandai before, but the question is whether Namco feels it would be profitable to do so.

Andrew: As mentioned above, the Tales series has a pretty devoted fan base here, and I’m absolutely sure that they would love to see some of the newer Tales games (such as Tales of Graces) make it over to the States. XSEED is a really good publisher and localization team that could do the series justice, as it is apparent Namco Bandai wants nothing to do with localizing the series themselves, so XSEED taking over this process might help convince them. If anyone is going to do it, it’ll be them. 85%

Graham: It may not make much money for Namco Bandai, but for a tiny publisher like XSEED, Atlus or NIS America, a franchise like Tales is a prize. If Namco really has given up on localizing it themselves (as it seems they have), they’ll make more money licensing it than just sitting on it. Sounds like I’m convinced, right? Well I’m convinced a deal will work out, and the ball’s rolling with XSEED’s comments, but I’m factoring in the possibility of Ignition, well, pulling an Ignition and poaching another game from XSEED’s potential lineup. 80% 

Shawn: Oh please let it happen! I may not be the most rabid Tales fan, having only played Vesperia, but it is still one of my top 360 games and I look forward to playing more of them. Also, XSEED does a great job with localization and exporting games that would otherwise never reach us. My question is whether Namco would allow it to happen, even if they don’t have to do any of the work. I’m gonna vote yes, just because I want it to be so. 80% 

This week we weigh in on a phone, a camera, and the return of an angel-killing witch.

Current score

Andrew Passafiume: +340

Graham Russell: +109

Eric Schabel: +65

Shawn Vermette: +185

Results

PSPGo Price to drop to $200 before Thanksgiving

In a move that was long overdue, Sony finally dropped the price of the PSPGo from $250 to $200 this week, finally making it a viable alternative to the UMD-equipped PSP-3000, which remains at $170.

Andrew 90% = +40

Graham 50% = 0

Shawn 70% = +20

PlayStation Phone to be confirmed by Sony in 2010

Rumors are swirling madly this week over the long rumored PlayStation Phone, not to be confused with the also long rumored PSP2. Engadget is touting pictures of the rumored device, which appears to look similar to the PSPGo, while Sony initially stirred the rumors on by saying that the lack of a cellular connection is limiting the PSP, then follows that with a non-denial when asked about the existence of a PlayStation Phone. At this point, barring this being a massive disinformation campaign, it appears a PlayStation Phone is on the horizon…but will it be announced in what remains of 2010?

Andrew: Seeing as information about new Sony products is often leaked well before the official details are released, I would not be surprised if this were real. I don’t know if this will be the actual PSP2 or not, or just a way for Sony to try and compete with a company like Apple, but I can definitely see this happening. But with the failure of the PSPGo, it’s hard to tell if Sony is willing to risk another potential handheld failure. 65%

Graham: I can’t see them not officially announcing this project within two months of it leaking. Maybe the details will wait, as they don’t want to distract from the holiday season, but…well, that was my reasoning for doubting the price cut. Let’s go in the complete other direction today. They’ll do it! It won’t make sense, but they will! Probably!  85%

Shawn: You know, I would probably buy a PlayStation Phone if it came out…assuming it was an Android phone. Considering the wealth of information that has released this week, and the strange comments by Sony, I’d say they’re on the verge of going ahead and making it official.90%

Sega to announce Bayonetta 2 by E3 2011

Platinum Games, creators of Bayonetta, have been teasing the possibility of making a sequel to it almost as soon as it was released. So far, Platinum Games has not released a sequel to any of the games they made in conjunction with Sega, however Bayonetta sold better than any of the other games they partnered on. The desire is obviously there for Platinum Games, but is it there for Sega also?

Andrew: Bayonetta, despite a slow start in terms of sales, did do pretty decent business for Sega. I’m guessing if they are willing to get behind a sequel to The Conduit, a game that sold rather poorly on the Wii, they would definitely do a Bayonetta sequel. I’m not sure if it will be announced at E3 though; TGS seems way more likely. 60%

Graham: The deal with Platinum Games gave Sega ownership of the IP, so despite Platinum’s strict no-sequels policy, the game could happen. It’s a more successful property than the others Platinum made, and if there will be a sequel, it’d need to happen soon. People may balk at the idea of Platinum not handling the development, though.  50% 

Shawn: Considering the desire of Platinum Games to make a sequel, and the fairly high sales of Bayonetta, I think the only reason Sega wouldn’t make a sequel is if they don’t have the rights to do so. Thus, I’ve got to lean heavily toward this being announced at E3, if not earlier. I mean, what else does Sega have that they can announce at E3? 75% 

Kinect’s price to drop by July 2011

Microsoft’s Kinect will finally be released on November 4, at the somewhat high price of $150. Granted, this price includes the ability to play with at least 2 players, but it is still a higher price than many expected when it was first announced. We here at Snackbar Games wonder how well it will sell at that price. If it doesn’t sell well, will Microsoft react quickly to drop the price?

Andrew: This all depends on how well the Kinect sells this holiday. If it does good business for Microsoft, it might be another year before we see a price drop, but if it does only decently (or poorly) we might see it drop in price rather quickly. I can definitely see the price drop being more of a possibility than not, but it’s pretty hard to tell at this point. 60%

Graham: There are two reasons for a price drop: phenomenal success or any sort of failure. Products get cheaper when you ramp up production, and if the demand drops they’ll either want to (1) save face and move units or (2) get rid of everything and get the experiment behind them. So…Yes, this will happen. Maybe just down to $129 or so, maybe to $99. Who knows. 90% 

Shawn: I hope that the Kinect vastly outsells the Move this holiday season, and not just because that’s what I predicted. I think it is a vastly superior piece of technology. On that note, I think Microsoft will be aggressive with pricing in order to increase sales or to keep the lead so I can definitely see Microsoft announcing a price drop at E3 next year. 80% 

This week we discuss price drops, holiday sales, and studio closures.

Current score

Andrew Passafiume: +300

Graham Russell: +109

Eric Schabel: +65

Shawn Vermette: +165

PSP Go price to drop to $200 before Thanksgiving

Gamers have almost universally shunned the PSP Go since its release last fall. Partly due to the fact that it had no UMD drive, thus making for more expensive games, and partly due to the fact that it was priced at $249, $80 more than the PSP-3000. The pricing situation may soon be alleviated though, as rumor has it that the price of the PSP Go will be going down to $200 before Thanksgiving.

Andrew: I’m surprised the price hasn’t dropped sooner, or it won’t be dropping even more. I don’t think they are selling particularly well and I doubt the price drop will help any, but it’s definitely something I’m surprised didn’t happen sooner. 90%

Graham: Look, the PSP Go was a failure, and Sony knows it. They’ll drop the price to get rid of stock at some point, but announcing a price drop during the holiday season would just be a reminder that there’s this horrible thing in a time where their reputation is key. It’s hard to say, so I’m punting.  50%

Shawn: Considering the cool reception of the PSP Go and the fact that it has now gone an entire year without a price drop tells me something is afoot. Sony hates price drops on their hardware, but unless they’ve entirely given up on the PSP Go, it is certainly time to drop the price on it. The real question, to me, is whether they’ll drop the price of the Go or the PSP-3000. Both need one, but does Sony even care anymore? I’m gonna say yes, they do. 70%

Krome Studios closing its doors

Krome has faced tough times recently. It used to be Australia’s largest independent developer, boasting a staff of over 400. However, at the end of last year, they laid off staff at all three of their studios. Then in April, they laid off more staff, and then a couple months ago they laid off even more staff and closed one of their studios entirely. Now, it is rumored, thanks to Twitter, that Krome will be making one final round of cuts soon. This round, however, would also result in closing their last two studios entirely.

Andrew: Considering how poorly Game Room did for Microsoft and how it was barely even supported with actual arcade games after it launched, this is really not that surprising. I’m not sure how the other Krome developed games have done, but the results of what happened with Game Room, the studio being shut down wouldn’t surprise me. 95%

Graham: This all happened pretty quickly. Game Room was supposed to be a cash cow, keeping on going for years with little fanfare but a lot of money. It didn’t work out that way, and the all-eggs-in-one-basket thing they’ve been trying lately isn’t a great approach when that happens. Are they dead? Yeah, they’re dead. The real question is whether they’ll close or just fade away into some other company so we can’t really call them gone. 90% 

Shawn: It’s unfortunate that a studio could fall so far so fast, but it’s hard to keep an independent studio open when none of your games the last couple years have sold particularly well. Probably the best game they’ve worked on since 2005 was The Force Unleashed for the Wii, PS2, and PSP. That simply isn’t enough to keep you afloat, as we’ve seen this year. I don’t know if they’ll close both of their studios in the near future, but it sounds like they are definitely close to having to do that. Especially with no games even listed as coming soon on their website.  60% 

Wii to outsell Xbox 360 and PS3 again this holiday season

Ever since the Wii released in November of 2006, it has been the top selling console during the holiday season, November-December, each year. This year has been the worst year yet in terms of Wii sales, comparatively, as the Xbox 360 and PS3 have outsold it for half the year. Can Nintendo finish the year strong by continuing their run of ‘winning’ each holiday season?

Andrew: Wii sales have been steadily decreasing throughout the year, but Nintendo usually has a great holiday, so it’s hard to say. With how well Microsoft has been doing, we might see them finally trump Nintendo with the release of the Kinect, and you never know what could happen with Sony. It seems likely that Nintendo could win, but this year is not as likely as the last few. 65%

Graham: That all depends on Kinect, doesn’t it? I mean, the core isn’t even close to embracing it (though Dance Central may make a few converts), but if this becomes the new little-kid-at-Christmas system, it has a chance of topping a Wii system that has already sold to everyone and their mother. I’m still giving it more than even odds of hanging onto the crown, though. 70% 

Shawn: I think that the huge titles coming out this month, and next, will do a lot to improve sales of the Wii this holiday season. True, there’s no Mario game this year, but I would think that a new Kirby game, and new Donkey Kong game, and a new Goldeneye would do wonders for the system’s sales. I certainly won’t predict a new sales record, like last year, but I do think that the Wii will bounce back and lead the holiday season again. 80%