Rumor Control: The Nintendo On and PSP/iPod-Xbox 360 connectivity

RUMOR #1: The video portion of Nintendo's next-generation console unveiling at E3 has been leaked.

Source: A video widely circulated in numerous forums on the Web, mostly stemming from a German upload site.

The official story: See below.

What we heard: Over the weekend, many a Nintendophile found what they thought was next-gen gold: a video clip showing what appears to be Nintendo's next-generation console, currently code-named the "Revolution." The video shows a truly revolutionary device indeed--named the "Nintendo On"--one that senses movement, Minority Report-style and has no controls whatsoever. It appears to demonstrate how the On will translate a user's movement into that of a game character, in this case Samus from Metroid. It also shows that the machine won't need a television either, since it will project the image into a set of goggles with built-in headphones. But not even Nintendo is crazy enough to repeat the Virtual Boy mistake. Today, forums were aflame with a rough translation of someone claiming to have created the video. But rather than being merely a prank, it appears that it was done as a protest against the short life span of consoles. "Commerciality forces companies to put out new consoles every 2 or 3 years with the only intent being to erase the limits (set by current consoles) for game developers. This does not allow game developers to let their imagination run wild and delight us (the gamers) with transcendent new games," said the Spain-based poster. But the video was no skin off Nintendo's collective behind. "Anyone is welcome to cover fan art, fan films, etc., so long as they report it as such," a rep told GameSpot.

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus.

RUMOR #2: A leaked ad confirms that Sony's next-gen console is called the PlayStation 3.

Source: A post on the Gaming Age forums (which were temporarily down at press time).

The official story: Sony is saving its next-generation announcement for its Monday press conference.

What we heard: Currently a teaser-ad campaign running around the LA Convention Center heavily hints that the next PlayStation will be called the PlayStation 3. But someone on the Gaming Age forums claims to have come into possession of an advertisement explicitly naming the console. Underneath a Spartan PlayStation 3 logo, the ad reads "PS3" and "PlayStation 3," with the words "ENTER THE THIRD GENERATION" superimposed over the words "SOON." The ad seems perfectly plausible...except for one detail. It misspells the name of Sony's game division as "Sony Computer Entertainement." Oops.

Bogus or not bogus?: The ad is bogus, but we'd be shocked--SHOCKED--if it was called anything other than the PlayStation 3.

RUMOR #3: You will be able to hook up your Sony PSP to the Xbox 360--as well as your iPod.

Source: That mecca for the nuts-and-bolts-conscious gamer, Tom's Hardware Guide.

The official story: "That's interesting."--Microsoft spokesperson.

What we heard: One of the features of the 360 that Microsoft has been touting is how it is a "digital entertainment" hub with USB 2.0 connectivity with devices like MP3 players and digital cameras. And since a memory stick-equipped PSP shows up as a hard drive, couldn't it also be connected to an Xbox 360? Apparently so. When demonstrating the Xbox 360 to Tom's Hardware Guide, Jeff Henshaw, the executive producer of Digital Entertainment for the Xbox, openly said it would work with a PSP. "Other console makers want to force you to buy brand 'S' memory and use a brand 'S' format to play on brand 'S' TVs," he told the site. "We just want things to work for the gamer and be as easy as possible." Also, according to the same article in Time magazine in which Microsoft chairman Bill Gates revealed that Halo 3 was launching around the same time as the PlayStation 3, "You can plug your iPod into the Xbox 360 and play songs off that too." Boss!

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus.

RUMOR #4: Nintendo's Revolution presentation will be of video footage only--no functioning hardware (including controllers) will be shown.

Source: UK trade site Gamesindustry.biz.

The official story: "Nintendo does not comment on rumors or speculation."--Nintendo spokesperson.

What we heard: Of the big three console makers, Nintendo was the first to announce that its next-generation console would be shown off at this year's E3. However, according to G'biz, "Sources close to the company have revealed that no Revolution hardware or specs will be discussed, with the console appearing only as a video of next-gen footage." The site astutely predicts that such a showing would "undoubtedly disappoint many." But is it true? Alas, GameSpot's own near-Nintendo sources think so. "No controller--just video," was the terse response that found its way into our inbox.

Bogus or not bogus?: Sounds not bogus, but we'll find out Tuesday.