Week in Games - October 30th

Nintendo Not Looking so Hot - From 2006-2009, everyone was of the popular opinion that Nintendo, with their popular Wii and DS platforms, had essentially a license to print money. This week, however, all notions of money printing have been firmly put to bed, at least for the first half of the 2011/2012 fiscal year, with the company posting a loss of around ¥70b (£570m). Of course, this is not entirely the company's own fault, and much of the loss can be chalked up to an overvalued Japanese Yen, which, for a company whose sales are 80% foreign, is only a bad thing. Furthermore, the April-October portion of the financial year is invariably the weakest, especially in the consumer electronics sector, with most sales coming during the Christmas period. Regardless, it's hard not to look at the lacklustre 3DS sales (albeit boosted by August's price cut) and not wonder if Nintendo knows where exactly they're heading. While the company does have several billion dollars in reserve currency, it remains to be seen how next year's new Wii U will fair in a market increasingly dominated by Apple and Google.

Rockstar Teasing GTA V - At the time of writing, the website of Rockstar games (www.rockstargames.com) is showing a countdown to the first trailer of the upcoming Grand Theft Auto V, the follow-up to 2008's hit GTAIV. Preliminary rumours and casting calls are suggesting a return to Los Santos or the state of San Andreas, the setting of 2004's GTA: San Andreas. Many are hoping for a new direction to the series, as GTAIV was seen as somewhat of a departure from the more "zany" antics seen in San Andreas. Despite lower reviews, GTAIV is often compared to Saints Row 2, the latter being seen by many as taking over the "fun" sandbox genre, while GTA took a more mature and serious route - one that didn't involve poop-spraying side-missions. As a person who genuinely enjoyed GTAIV's tone, but also the less serious Saints Row 2, this editor is hoping Rockstar can flirt with some form of middle ground, especially with next month's Saints Row 3 looking increasingly interesting.

Sonic Generations "most anticipated" Sonic Game - Games fans are often torn over which Sonic the Hedgehog games are the best, often of the opinion that the newer games don't meet the quality of the classics. However, Sega's latest attempt with Sonic Generations - its main feature being a mash-up of levels from both Classic and Modern eras of Sonic - has fans paying utmost attention to the project. Both versions of the titular blue hedgehog are playable, looking to satisfy those who want complex platforming and those who are looking for pure speed. Sega has released a statement saying that Sonic Generations has "exceeded all previous pre-order records". The 360, PS3, and PC versions release on November 4th, and the 3DS version releases on the 25th - watch this space for a review soon!

Halloween DLC for Dungeon Defenders - Major holidays are often used by games publishers as dates to release themed content - and while your favourite MMOs will most likely be adorned with pumpkins and cobwebs this week, Trendy Entertainment is releasing new (and most importantly, free) downloadable content for their recent Co-Op Tower Defence game, Dungeon Defenders. Only available on steam (PS3 and 360 users are out of luck), new costumes, weapons, and an extra-challenging bonus level are part of the pack.

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