VIDEO: Watch Part Three of Our Year in Review Special

Traditionally the third quarter has been the quiet before the holiday-season release storm. However, this year saw one of the most anticipated games in years hit the market. After four years of saying that Doom 3 would be "ready when it's done," id Software finally told the world that it was, in fact, done. And although it didn't quite meet the sky-high expectations that developed during its long road to release, the game did start the PC shopping season off early.

The normally dull dog days of August heated up with the release of Doom 3.

As is often the case, the summer saw a lot of big business happenings in the industry. Sony responded to Nintendo's next-generation "Revolution" revelation by announcing that it would unveil the successor to the PlayStation 2 at next year's E3. Nintendo finalized the launch date (November 21) and price ($149) for its upcoming DS dual-screen handheld. And Bethesda Softworks got many old-school gamers' hopes up when it announced that it had bought the Fallout license from the all-but-dead publisher Interplay.

However, the news was not all good, with three veteran publishers falling on hard times. LucasArts admitted it was undergoing "major restructuring" and made moves to cut staff and outsource development. Following the disappointing reception of Thief: Deadly Shadows and Hitman: Contracts, Eidos announced that it was putting itself on the auction block--but had not found any suitable bidders by year's end. Acclaim was less fortunate: Once one of the biggest names in publishing, the already struggling publisher was dealt a series of financial body blows, which culminated in its shutting its doors for good at the end of August.

One-time Burnout publisher Acclaim flamed out with alarming speed this year.

In the ambivalent-news department, Sony announced that it was delaying the American and European launch of the PSX following the PVR/PS2 hybrid's tepid sales in Japan. The industry issued a collective shrug and moved on. Gamers who liken Electronic Arts to the Borg also probably had very mixed feelings about the massive publisher buying Criterion. Besides being the developer of Burnout 3: Takedown, the UK studio also makes the popular RenderWare middleware used in the Grand Theft Auto games. So now every time a copy of San Andreas is sold, EA gets a piece. Mike Toreno would most definitely approve.

July Bethesda developing and publishing Fallout 3 The Elder Scrolls developer licenses the beloved sci-fi RPG series from Interplay and is already hinting at sequels. More Half-Life 2 theft details emerge A British newspaper article sheds new light on gaming's most notorious code heist. PS3 to be unveiled at next E3 Sony says its next-generation console will be on display next May, with SDKs to come in Q2 or Q3 2005. EA assimilates Criterion The mammoth publisher buys out the Burnout developer with an eye on its RenderWare middleware. Rumor of the Month Though Enter the Matrix developer Shiny Entertainment wouldn't comment, The Wall Street Journal reported that the next The Matrix game for consoles would be released for the Xbox Next.

August Doom 3 ships Activision and id finally open the gates of hell, releasing their demonic PC shooter to the public. Eidos in preliminary discussions for takeover Eidos shares climb in London as media reports say major publishers are looking to buy the ailing company. LucasArts undergoing "major restructuring" The Star Wars games publisher confirms laying off staff and moving Episode III development off-site. KOTOR III development stalled. Acclaim shutters offices, staffers ushered off premises Glen Cove staff laid off on Friday, Texas staff locked out of their offices; games library in jeopardy. Rumor of the Month A prankster who got hold of Gabe Newell's password began posting messages that Half-Life 2 was going gold on August 30. It didn't.

September ATI "winding down" work on Xbox Next ATI CFO Terry Nickerson tells a technology conference that his company is finishing up work on the next-gen console's graphics processor. Valve vs. Vivendi Universal dogfight heats up in US District Court The two-year-old dispute playing out in Federal Court revs up as court dates approach. Nintendo DS: $149 on November 21 Though it hasn't revealed the launch lineup, Nintendo announces that its dual-screen portable will ship first in the United States. New $149 PlayStation 2 unveiled After weeks of dancing around the subject, Sony finally unveils a slimmed-down version of its console. First pictures inside. Rumor of the Month In mid September, it was rumored Warren Spector was going to jump ship from Eidos to a new studio Midway was establishing in Austin. This rumor was notable because it was so close to the truth. Spector left Eidos in early November, not long after Midway established an Austin studio. However, as of year's end, Spector was still a free agent, while his former right-hand man at Ion Storm, Harvey Smith, became Midway-Austin's creative director.

Next: Year in Review 2004 Q4 >>