The single greatest news of the week has to be Game Freak saying they're considering making a Pokemon RPG for Gamecube. After longing for one on the N64, and receiving the more-than-adequate Pokemon Stadium, so-so Pokemon Snap and Hey You Pikachu! (a game which never saw light in this bit of the world), we were forced to wait longer. And when news filtered through of a batch of Pokemon games, I think we all were a little disappointed to see Box, Colluseum and that other one (care no little for them can't even remember all their names). I remember writing in a Digest how bitterly disappointing it was to see them, and not a full-blown 3D Pokemon game.

But now, there is hope. Can you imagine how big a 3D Pokemon RPG game on Gamecube would be? I mean, talk about a sales spike in Japan. They'd just go bonkers over it. And so would this writer. There's so much possibilities. How about connectivity options with GBA games, so that you could load up your handheld 'mon and battle it out in 3D? It would be the single greatest reason to buy a GBA/GC cable, I'd run out to the shops in a heartbeat. Our the ability to transfer your creatures onto a memory card, to battle your mate in his house. Of course, so far I'm talking about little more than a Stadium update. But a full RPG would be amazing, it really would. Perhaps some less linear gameplay to go with the beautifully-realised world? And how about all your little monsters battling it out in turns, with moves happening in real-time before your eyes, rather than just the static animations of the GBA. Or maybe even (God forbid) the ability to go online with it, and battle trainers from all over the world, with proper Nintendo-hosted tournaments? Of course, this is all just speculation. The game mightn't even be made, and if it is don't expect it until at least Christmas 2004, 2005 does seem a more likely date. Still, the mere prospect is enough to get this writer as giddy as a schoolgirl.

Speaking of online play, encouraging comments came from the direction of one Satoru Iwata on the subject. Rather than a flat denial we've come to know as standard, he claimed they were looking into it. There have been rumblings about, concerning work Nintendo is doing on some kind of online platform. And everyone knows they are developing some games to take advantage of it. Once they figure out a cost-effective online plan, it's on. Don't be surprised to see the result of these investigations by the end of Gamecube's lifespan, maybe even earlier if some are to be believed. Whatever happens this generation, you can bet Nintendo will have something sorted out for Gamecube 2, I think they're beginning to realise what an advantages a viable online plan could have. Not only this, but it's a sign of growing open-mindness within Nintendo, and perhaps a certain aggression too.

They're undoubtedly going to need any such aggression up against PS3 and XBox 2, as a their financial figures (released this week) show a fall in profits (almost 40%), something blamed on the growing positions of Nintendo's console rivals, Sony most particularly. Nintendo are still making a heapload of profits, in comparison to Sony and Microsoft (Microsoft especially, who are really feeling the burn) but however big a pile of cash Nintendo has stocked away, it isn't bottomless. And while one gaming giant suffers a little, another one is on the up. With the appointment of a new president for Sega, comes the joyous news that they're finally making a profit again. Sega were unjustifiably booted out of the console market by the mainstream appeal of PS2, so it's brilliant to see them doing well again. Their games mightn't be as good as they used to be, but no-one can argue that Sega made a heck of a contribution to the industry, and are one of the top developers around.

Time for the disappointing end of this week's news; Enter the Matrix has sold over 1 million copies in a week. 1 million. While it's not an awful game, most can agree that it is undeserving of such monstrous sales. It seems that once again, hype and brand have mattered more than actual gameplay. Chalk up another one for the mainstream gamers.

Conor Smyth
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