The Last Word: January 29-February 2

This week started off looking pretty grim for Sony, as analysts predicted the quarterly profits of the electronics giant would fall 50 percent. However, when Sony announced its earnings the next day, profits were only down 5.3 percent to $1.3 billion. However, its game division did take a $455 million hit, thanks to selling the PlayStation 3 at "strategic price points."

Another megacompany that reported earnings this week was Electronic Arts. After a 2005 holiday season that saw the publisher take in $259 million in profits, the final three months of 2006 only brought in $160 million. Sales for the quarter were up slightly, though, going from $1.27 billion in 2005 to $1.28 billion in 2006. The publisher also announced that it would be publishing the upcoming PS3 game Mercenaries 2.

There's no doubt some of that coin was brought in by EA's Madden NFL franchise, the lone NFL-branded football game on the market. However, an old foe of the franchise is dusting off the cleats and returning to the competition. 2K Sports announced that Visual Concepts is hard at work on All-Pro Football 2K8, a spiritual successor to the NFL 2K franchise published by Sega. There is no word on what players or teams the game will use, but one possibility is that 2K will try and rope in famous footballers of the past.

Though a Sony rep called the Wii an "impulse buy more than anything else," one German toy conference called it an award winner. The console, along with WarioWare: Smooth Moves, won the Trend and Lifestyle award at the Spielwarenmesse International Toy Fair, which is currently taking place in Nürnberg, Germany.

It was a bad week for rich, lazy gamers, as online auction site eBay decided to prohibit the sale of virtual items and property on its site. While that means no World of Warcraft gold or EverQuest II armor can be sold on the site, the new rule does not cover items from popular lifestyle game Second Life. An eBay rep said, "We think there is an open question about whether Second Life should be regarded as a game."

While that expo was full of attendees marveling over WarioWare's The Waiter, The Big Cheese, and The Sketch Artist, the Gen Con So Cal expo did its best impression of The Quitter. Once a front-runner to pick up some slack from the downsized Electronic Entertainment Expo, organizers of the Gen Con So Cal expo revealed that they were canceling the event due to competition, flat attendance, and the withdrawal of key exhibitors.

Burger King reported its earnings--wait, what? Yes, Burger King reported its earnings this week, and what did CEO John W. Chidsey point out as a factor in the company's 40 percent rise in profits? The Xbox brand. The BK-themed games Sneak King, Big Bumpin', and Pocketbike Racer--offered with Burger King Value Meals for $3.99--sold 3.2 million copies and "increased both sales and restaurant traffic."

Perhaps the biggest news of the week, though it likely won't make its mark for a while, was the release of Microsoft's new PC operating system, the oft-delayed Vista. While some criticize the program's security controls, the incorporation of DirectX 10 is said to bring better graphical performance to games. Some games, such as the PC port of Halo 2, will require the new operating system.

On the games front, God of War II went gold, Konami announced several new games at its Gamers' Day event, Saints Row is headed for the PlayStation 3, and Spore was confirmed for the Nintendo DS.

MONDAY
Bloomberg: Sony profits could fall 50 percent
eBay delisting most virtual items
God of War II almost gold
Q&A: Jane Jensen talks Gray Matter
Gen Con So Cal so canceled

TUESDAY
2K returns to gridiron
Sony's numbers add up
M'soft details XBLA releases
Vista's shipping out
Brit cop photographed playing PSP on duty

WEDNESDAY
Sony rep: Wii an impulse buy
DVD Empire exits, slams game biz
Godzilla stomps onto Wii, handhelds
Saints Row coming to PS3
Vivendi Games reports profits

THURSDAY
Spore, My Sims confirmed for DS
Burning Crusade downloadable
Lord of the Rings RPG "on hold"
Retail Radar: Dark Messiah on 360, Sims 2: Celebration Stuff
EA publishing Mercenaries 2

FRIDAY
Castlevania collected on PSP
THQ dodging Halo 3, GTA 4
Wii gets 'Hottest' DDR yet
Dan Aykroyd to appear in Ghostbusters game
WWE ready to rumble on Wii, DS

RUMORS OF THE WEEK
Rewards coming for Xbox 360 achievements?
Mass Effect coming May 18?
THQ prepping new Red Faction?

RELEASES
Shippin' Out January 29-February 2: Rogue Galaxy, Vanguard