2006: The year that...
Refresh your memory with our run-down of the past gaming year's hottest topics
March: The month that...
The first fears of PS3 launch delay emerged
Would Sony really be able to deliver its all-powerful next-gen console by May as originally promised? Whispers were already suggesting that PS3 wouldn't arrive until after spring and, lo and behold, those fears were realised when Sony made the official announcement that its new machine wouldn't receive a simultaneous global launch until November. This disappointing news still didn't stop Sony confidently flaunting PlayStation as the"true definition of the videogame business".
Rockstar shocked us again!
Yes, we were shocked. But this time it wasn't because its new game would let us do the nasty with hookers or give us the opportunity to perform brutal murder using plastic bags. No, it was because the undisputed King of Controversy had announced its first next-gen project and it was... ping pong. The gaming world reeled in disbelief as it struggled with the idea that Rockstar could actually produce something so offensively inoffensive.
Above: No violence, no swearing... just ping and pong. Rockstar had a sissy moment and created the sports game of 2006
PSP got fresh; Microsoft got busy
After the runaway success of DS Lite it was inevitable that talk of a new, redesigned PSP was heard through the internet grapevine. And, while not completely missing the mark, it transpired that the whispers could simply be attributed to a feature update for Sony's slabtastic handheld that included GPS, an EyeToy style camera and the ability to play PSone games... Meanwhile, back at the lab, rumours of a Microsoft handheld competitor were gathering momentum.
Everyone was talkin' about Revolution
The competitively inferior specs of Nintendo's new console appeared for all next-gen stalwarts to mock, while gamers happy in 2D raised their glasses to Revo's Virtual Console. Big N president, Satoru Iwata, talked about the papery root of all evil and how Revolution would be kind to piggy banks. Iwata's comments on simultaneous global console launches made European Nintendo fans anxious, before the house of Mario stepped in to clear up any confusion.
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Above: No violence, no swearing... just ping and pong. Rockstar had a sissy moment and created the sports game of 2006
PSP got fresh; Microsoft got busy
After the runaway success of DS Lite it was inevitable that talk of a new, redesigned PSP was heard through the internet grapevine. And, while not completely missing the mark, it transpired that the whispers could simply be attributed to a feature update for Sony's slabtastic handheld that included GPS, an EyeToy style camera and the ability to play PSone games... Meanwhile, back at the lab, rumours of a Microsoft handheld competitor were gathering momentum.
Everyone was talkin' about Revolution
The competitively inferior specs of Nintendo's new console appeared for all next-gen stalwarts to mock, while gamers happy in 2D raised their glasses to Revo's Virtual Console. Big N president, Satoru Iwata, talked about the papery root of all evil and how Revolution would be kind to piggy banks. Iwata's comments on simultaneous global console launches made European Nintendo fans anxious, before the house of Mario stepped in to clear up any confusion.