Despite Sony boasting eight times more revenue, Bloomberg is reporting that Nintendo’s market value has surpassed that of PS3 giant Sony. This is an indicator of the importance of the next gen war which Nintendo is currently winning.

Based in Kyoto in Western Japan, Nintendo’s shares rose to 46 350 yen ($367) bringing its net worth to 6.57 trillion yen ($53 billion). The rise in Nintendo’s shares meant that it overtook Sony’s net worth of 6.48 trillion yen ($52 billion). Nintendo’s shares dropped to 45 100 yen ($365) at the close of the Tokyo-based Nikkei stock exchange.

Sony stormed the market in 2000 with the PS2 but did not repeat its success with the PS3 due to production delays and slow sales. The Wii’s innovation and, more importantly, lower price meant that it outsold the PS3 in Japan last month.

Enterbrain Inc are reporting that Nintendo sold 251 794 Wiis in May in Japan, beating the PS3 sales by five to one and four to one in April. The NPD Group has reported that Nintendo sold 338 000 Wiis in the US, compared to 81 600 PS3s and 154 900 Xbox 360s.

Ken Toyoda, Nintendo spokesperson, believes that Nintendo’s sales in the US have not reached their potential because the company has sold twice as many consoles in North America than in Japan or Europe in the past. He reports that Nintendo has sold 2.37 million Wiis in the US, 2 million in Japan and 1.47 million in other regions including Europe.

Nintendo is expected to exceed Sony in sales this year. Nintendo forecast 1.14 trillion yen ($9.2 billion) in revenue this business year. Its last fiscal year which ended in March 2007 boasted 966.5 billion yen ($7.8 billion). Sony, yet to publish an estimate for its financial 2008 year, reported 1.02 trillion yen ($8 billion) sales in its game division.

Source: Bloomberg

Date Design Interactive has announced that Ninjabread Man for the Wii has gone gold.

Ninjabread Man sees once peaceful and sweet Candy Land being attacked by snapping Cup Cakes, Angry Bees and Jelly Monsters. There is only one who can put a stop to this mayhem…Ninjabread Man!

A tough cookie

Players will find themselves throwing Ninja stars to stun enemies followed by a swift attack with Ninjabread Man’s samurai sword! Use the Wii Remote to direct your attack and learn Ninja fighting techniques as you build up a weapon store to defeat your enemies. Prepare to face a variety of enemies, some flying, some fast and some just plain sneaky!

XIDER Games has announced two new Nintendo DS titles, Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King and Luminator DS. These two titles will mark the publisher’s entry into the DS market following it becoming officially recognized as a licensed DS publisher in Europe. Both titles are scheduled to be released in the second half of 2007.

Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King

Players will meet young adventurer Assil in Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King. Assil picks up a death curse and Ankh amulet at the Pharaoh’s Pyramid. In order to lose the curse he must find the Pharaoh. Only problem is that Osiris, God of the Underworld, wants the precious Ankh. Players can expect humour, imaginative characters as well as original locations and themed puzzles.

Luminator DS

Luminator DS is a music based puzzle game. Based on Tetris, players must build cubes to the music’s beat to earn points. Earn more points as you go higher and build better combinations. The game features 16 different background designs, 15 soundtracks and two difficulty levels in the endless mode. Also look out for the puzzle mode which will challenge you with 45 puzzles and three difficulty levels.

Helmut Schmitz, Managing Director at XIDER states, “XIDER is really excited to be bringing these two great titles in two popular genres for the DS to the UK market. Not only are they our first DS games, but Nintendo DS has proved itself to be a popular format and the latest games, I am sure, will soon be a favourite choice.”

Ankh: Curse of the Scarab King will retail at £29.99 and Luminator DS at £19.99.

505 Games has announced Fashion Designer: Style Icon for the Nintendo DS. Developed by Creative Patterns and expected to arrive sometime in November, it allows gamers to enter the fashion world with a flick of the stylus.

Players assume the role of a young designer as they move from fashion training school to graduation and start up a workshop where they will accept design contracts, supply small shops and set up mail order companies. Before long you will be supplying your designs to the stars!

With simulation mission based game play, players will present creations in catalogues and movie posters as well as select supermodels, hairstyles and creations for the catwalk. Players will be rated based on their tailoring time, design choices and accuracy.

The game features Free mode as well as the Career mode. Here players can challenge friends to design-offs in wireless multiplayer games. Look out for unlockable patterns, fabrics, supermodels and accessories.

In a post on SCEA’s PlayStation blog titled ‘Firmware 1.82 coming soon,’ Director of PlayStation Network Operations, Eric Lempel, has confirmed that a PS3 firmware update is in the works.

According to Lempel, Firmware 1.82 is “scheduled for released in the next few days” and it is “an update that enables the playback of AVC High Profile (H.264/MPEG-4) files.” He goes on to explain that “these are high quality files that you’ll now be able to play on your PS3. Hopefully this update is moving us closer to the audio playback features many of you commented about in my post the other week. We’re continuing to evaluate and improve things across the board, including PS2 software compatibility.”

Lempel ended by promising to post an update once the firmware is “live and ready.” Better watch out, this could mean that it bites.

F.E.A.R. fans will be delighted to hear that a new title update called Control and Conquer All Map Pack has arrived. Once downloaded, this free Map Pack will unlock the ability to play two new multiplayer modes, ‘Control’ and ‘Conquer All,’ on original F.E.A.R. multiplayer maps. Downloading this update will also ensure that F.E.A.R. is compatible with the new maps that will be made available for purchase throughout the summer.

Both ‘Conquer’ and ‘Conquer All’ are new team games that pit teams against one another as they struggle to dominate different control points on the map. The control points can be dominated by standing in the point’s proximity and eliminating any enemies who encroach upon the point.

Capture the three control points of the map in ‘Control’ and prevent enemy forces from recapturing them. Teams gain points based on how long the control point is in their possession. Teams gain points faster if they have more control points. The team with the most points at the end of the round wins.

‘Conquer All’ has five control points on the map. Players score based on their teams’ kills, enemy points neutralised and control points at the end of the round. Players can capture all five control points to end the round early. If no team has all five control points simultaneously, the wining team will be decided by points. Players will recognise some old favourites maps such as Rubble, Campus and Docks which have been included but changed somewhat.

The title update also makes it possible for a host in a Player Match to invite friends to public slots and private slots. Also keep an eye out for blood splatter which will appear on enemy uniforms after they have been shot. To make the game play more cinematic, players will also now have a full HUD fade option in the HUD fade speed slider.

Sierra Entertainment’s Vivendi Games has announced Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy will be landing on the Xbox 360 and PS3 in summer 2008. The title is being developed by High Moon Studios (an internal developer for Sierra) and marks the first in its exclusive global partnership with Ludlum Entertainment. Combining elements from the novel and film titled The Bourne Identity, the game will feature new content developed in conjunction with Ludlum Entertainment.

Enter the shadowy world of an expert assassin

Players will assume the role of Jason Bourne, a $30 million elite agent, as they discover his true identity and experience what makes him a ‘malfunctioning weapon, first hunting targets around the world as a deadly government assassin then marking himself as his agency’s most wanted.’

“Robert Ludlum’s best-selling spy novel and blockbuster film adaptation have awed millions with riveting, unforgettable fiction,” said Al Simone, senior vice president, global marketing for Sierra Entertainment. “For the first time ever, players will be able to experience the shadowy world of expert assassin Bourne, who continues to find himself plagued by splintered nightmares from his former life.”

Taking inspiration from elements within the Bourne universe

Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy promises to deliver tension and action, with players adopting Bourne’s survival sense, cunning, target awareness and firearms training. Prepare to engage in close-quarters action as well as firefights as this third-person espionage action sees Bourne using hand-to-hand combat and shooting to escape and evade capture.

Peter Della Penna, president of High Moon Studios said, “High Moon has collaborated closely with Mr. Ludlum’s estate holders, the guardians of his creative vision, since the day we began to develop the game. The goal of that collaboration has been to create a videogame that takes inspiration from known elements within the Bourne universe, elements that have captivated more than a quarter of a billion people around the world, with original story and game play that establishes a signature Jason Bourne game experience. Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy is our installment to the series and is meant to reside on its own within the Bourne entertainment library.”

Watch out for this title at E3 which runs from the 11th to the 13th of July.

Forza Motorsport 2 has held on to the number 1 spot in the All Formats Chart in the UK for a third week in a row, this despite sales dropping 45%. Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer from 2K Games/Take 2 climbs six places to number 2 (experiencing 70% increase in sales) while Codemasters’ Colin McRae: Dirt moves up one spot to number 3 (29% drop in sales).

The movie tie-ins continue to do well on the All Formats Chart. Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End moves down one spot to number 4 while Activision’s Spider-Man 3 moves up one spot to number 6. With the blockbuster film due out this Friday the 29th of June, Activision’s Shrek the Third debuts at number 13 on the DS, Wii, Xbox 360 and PC. The PS2 version is due out this Friday.

Wii Play slides in to number 5 with Eidos’ Tomb Raider: Anniversary in number 7. Nintendo’s Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training continues to challenge gamers grey matter in number 8 while Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer 6 scores at number 9. 505 Games’ Cooking Mama is still cooking at number ten.

Empire’s Flatout: Ultimate Carnage for the Xbox 360 debuts at number 14 while 505 Games’ Armored Core 4 for the PS3 and Xbox 360 is the final new entry within the Top 40, sliding into position 39.

The Xbox 360 Price Chart is dominated by Forza Motorsport 2 in the top spot, followed by Colin McRae: Dirt and FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage (highest new entry).

Source: Chart Track

Following in the footsteps of the Red Edition, the Black Edition for Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas today becomes available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Available in all Xbox Live regions, the Black Edition will cost you 800 Microsoft Points.

The Player’s Pack: Black Edition includes 5 multiplayer maps, 3 never before seen maps such as Red Lotus and Wartown, a reduxed version of Streets and the classic PRESIDIO from Rainbow Six 3.

Be sure to check it out.

Cory Barlog, Creative Director for God of War: Chains of Olympus recently revealed some key information about this highly anticipated PSP game in a series titled ‘Inside the Developers Studios’ on SCEA’s PlayStation blog.

Kicking off with a joking announcement about a new rumble feature for the PSP, Barlog confirmed that God of War: Chains of Olympus would be taking full advantage of the newly unlocked PSP processor speed. This announcement comes after SCEA confirmed that current version 3.5 firmware resolves the software restriction which capped the CPU speed at 266 MHz.

“Ready at Dawn has been doing some pretty amazing stuff with the PSP since the early days of the platform. Every time I see a new build I am more amazed with what we’re able to pull off with the PSP. I mean, 1080p on the PSP…who would have freaking thought??? Ok so that is wholly untrue, but it does look amazing. I feel confident in saying that we (and when I say we, I mean Ready at Dawn since they are doing the bulk of the work) are nailing the look and feel of God of War for the PSP. If everything goes according to plan then this will be a must-have game in your PSP library.”

Barlog disclosed that the combat for God of War: Chains of Olympus is “coming along really nicely.” He finished the post by saying “I hope to have more info on the game sometime soon, keep your eyes open at E3. I’ll let you know when we’re finished.” A release date for God of War: Chains of Olympus has yet to be announced.

Gamecock Media Group has announced that Wideload’s Hail to the Chimp will be released on the Xbox 360 and PS3 in Spring 2008.

“No one has attempted to bring an over-the-top party game like Hail to the Chimp to next-gen consoles, much less one with biting political satire,” said Rick Stults, Console Chief for Gamecock Media Group. “Keeping with its reputation, Wideload is going to give gamers something truly original.”

The biggest political race the animal kingdom has ever seen

The story picks up with the Lion being disposed as King after several embarrassing scandals. The animal kingdom believes it is high time that democracy begin in the jungle and so begins an election for the next King. The election becomes a multiplayer free-for-all with candidates using brute force as well as dirty tricks as ten animals compete to become the next King. The game sees these ten candidates forming and breaking alliances with their rivals as they attempt to gain the upper hand. Look out for hazard filled arenas as well as multiple game types which are sure to keep the action flowing.

If you happened to log onto the Xbox.com site today, you may have noticed a few changes. The web team has been working on a redesign which was due to go live today after 12:00 PT. No downtown is predicted.

The update is a visual redesign and so does not include any new features. There will, however, be a new look for all of the content pages, redesigned navigation, one click access to the My Xbox section and a new search function using LIVE search.

The popular European board game Carcassonne arrives on Xbox Live Arcade this week. Available from 09:00 GMT on Wednesday the 27th of June, this medieval game will cost you 800 Microsoft Points.

Carcassonne begins with an empty landscape and a single square tile. One to four players take turns selecting from 72 tiles which display roads, castle walls or fields. As the players place the tiles the medieval countryside grows as players complete towns, roads and farms in an attempt to accumulate the most points.

Master strategy in the medieval world

Carcassonne features AI settings which are sure to test any skill level and boasts skill-based matchmaking for ranked games. Multiplayer capability means that up to five players can play the game over Xbox Live or up to four players can play on the same Xbox 360. The game supports the Xbox Live Vision Camera and includes a step-by-step tutorial which will help you master the game. The complete Carcassonne includes 72 tiles, all rule sets as well as the Rivers 1 expansion set with 12 additional tiles. Players can earn up to 200 gamerscore and 12 achievements.

Nintendo of America added three new classic titles to the Wii Shop Channel this week.

F-Zero X (N64, 1 – 4 players, 1000 Wii Points) features 30 different hover-car racers including updated versions of the Blue Falcon and other vehicles from the original F-Zero. Try to avoid the other cars as you race on twisting and turning tracks and attempt to cross the finish line first. Players can also try win the Grand Prix Cup, get the fastest lap time in Time Trial, take out the competition in Death Race or challenge up to three friends in Versus mode. F-Zero X also features five separate play modes as well as hidden vehicles and courses.

Street Fighter II’ Turbo: Hyper Fighting (SNES, 1 – 2 players, 800 Wii Points) revolutionized the fighting game genre in the 1990’s. The third and final release in the original series, it features the eight original World Warriors (including Ryu, Chun Li and Guile) and playable boss characters (Balrog, Sagat and M. Bison). This title offers enhanced playing speed and improved character balancing.

China Warrior (Turbografx16, 1 player, 600 Wii Points) is a side-scrolling action game. Kung Fu master Wang must defeat the Dark Emperor who stands at the top of the kung fu world in China. Players must punch, kick and jump-kick enemies as they navigate their way to the three bosses of each stage. Fight your way through four stages while searching for recovery items and defeating enemies. Players can look forward to one-on-one battles against the bosses.

Take-Two has temporarily shelved Manhunt 2 thanks to a ban of sales of the game in the UK and Ireland and an Adults Only rating in the US.

The publisher had this to say, “Take-Two Interactive Software has temporarily suspended plans to distribute Manhunt 2 for the Wii or PlayStation platforms while it reviews its options with regard to the recent decisions made by the BBFC and ESRB. We continue to stand behind this extraordinary game. We believe in freedom of creative expression, as well as responsible marketing, both of which are essential to our business of making great entertainment.”

Take-Two’s Manhunt 2 was scheduled to be released on the PS2, PSP and Wii on the 10th of July, however, Sony and Nintendo put a screeching halt to this in the wake of the Adults Only rating that the game received from the ESRB. Both companies have policies which prohibit third parties from releasing Adults Only rated titles on their systems, and both Sony and Nintendo confirmed that they would be sticking to their guns on this one.

Take-Two has yet to confirm whether it will appeal against the rating, modify the game to achieve a less restrictive rating or shelve it indefinitely.