The launch of PlayStation 2 is bad news for Nintendo. Its N64 has been falling behind PS1 for some time and it was expected that the company would have more news and hopefully even a prototype of its new generation Dolphin console, which was originally due for launch in Japan at the end of this year. But as so often happens with Nintendo it will fail to deliver on time and the launch date has slipped back to mid-2001. To make matters worse as far as Nintendo players were concerned, the company was refusing to give out any more information on the Dolphin, saying people would have to wait until the Space Show in Tokyo on August 25, when hopefully a working prototype will be available.
It was originally announced that the Dolphin would have a 400MHz processor, but that may have changed by the time the final specifications are released. It is expected that it will be Internet-enabled and there has been speculation it will be broadband capable, with the additional potential for downloads over 3G mobile phone networks.
In the meantime the company is struggling to keep faith with its fans who are beginning to migrate in increasing numbers to the other consoles. In what was considered an almost desperate move to try and capture some of the older players, Nintendo unveiled the least-Nintendo N64 game ever. Conkers Bad Fur Day takes one of Nintendos cute squirrel characters and turns him into a foul-mouthed drunk with an attitude problem and a South Park sense of humour. The company even built a pub on its stand and gave out free beer to the media to promote the game, which includes send ups of several movies including Saving Private Ryan.
State of play
A surprise player
Enter X-Box
Playstation2 in the flesh
Dreamcast alive and kicking
The next generation