Immer diese besserwisserischen Sonyfreaks...
, was für eine Quelle ist bitte tecchannel? Da kann ich mir meine News ja auch gleich selber zusammenreimen.
Mangels Link setze ich den Artikel von Reuters mal so hier rein.
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Quiet Debut for Nintendo's GameCube
By Daisuke Wakabayashi
TOKYO (Reuters) - Greeted by small armies of game fanatics, Nintendo (news - web sites) Co Ltd's GameCube game console tiptoed onto shelves in Japan on Friday minus the hype surrounding the arrival of its big-muscled rivals.
Legions of males ranging in age from 15 to 40, many armed with Nintendo's hand-held GameBoy machines, waited outside Tokyo stores since before dawn to be the first to take home one of 500,000 GameCubes initially shipped for the launch.
``Nintendo, they make games. They don't make just game machines, so whenever they make something, you know it is going to be quality,'' said Anthon Thomas, a 19-year-old part-time student from London, who flew to Japan to dish out $210 for a GameCube.
Nintendo ran an aggressive month-long advertising campaign for its lunch-box shaped GameCube, in an effort to challenge the dominance of Sony Corp (news - web sites)'s (6758.T) PlayStation 2 (news - web sites) in the cut-throat market for next-generation game consoles.
But the 7 a.m. launch was overshadowed by Tuesday's unprecedented terror attacks on the United States, an event that has shocked the world and continues to dominate media attention.
Sony Corp's more expensive, DVD-enabled PlayStation 2 debuted with a splash in Japan in March 2000, fueled by media hype and a wide-reaching public relations campaign.
Likewise, Microsoft Corp (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) is already hyping its Xbox (news - web sites) console, due to be launched in the United States in November, backed by a $500 million marketing treasure chest to ensure the success of its first venture into the game hardware business.
Nonetheless, demand for the GameCube, which is set to debut in the United States on November 18, has been strong.
``Around 80 percent of our 180 stores have sold out their first batch of GameCubes,'' said a spokesman for supermarket chain operator Ito-Yokado Co Ltd (8264.T).
Major video-rental chain Tsutaya, owned by Culture Convenience Club Co Ltd (4756.T), and electronics retailer Bic Camera said they expected to sell all their GameCubes by Sunday.
``I wouldn't say the sales have been explosive, but the GameCubes have been selling well, but maybe not as well as PlayStation 2 (when it debuted),'' said a spokesman for Culture Convenience Club.
Large Japanese retailers such as Ito-Yokado, fellow supermarket chain operator Daiei Inc (8263.T), Toys ``R'' Us-Japan (7645.Q), and convenience store chain Lawson Inc (2651.T) began taking advance orders for GameCube last month.
Nintendo aims to keep shelves stocked with GameCubes through the winter holiday season, and said it expected no problem in meeting its target of shipping 1.4 million consoles in Japan by the end of December.
Sony initially faced production and shipping delays for PlayStation 2 because of component shortages.
WANTED: DIE-HARD GAMERS
Three GameCube titles -- ``Luigi's Mansion'' and ``Wave Race: Blue Storm'' made by Nintendo and ``Monkey Ball'' from Sega Corp (7964.T) -- were released the same day, priced at around $50.
The quirky Kyoto-based game maker is known for fun, creative game titles that feature likeable characters such as old-timer Mario and the wildly popular Pokemon.
Nintendo fans, who grew up with classic titles like ``Super Mario Brothers'' and ``The Legend of Zelda,'' attest there is something special about Nintendo games.
``The Nintendo games are made with care. If I buy one, it feels like I can play forever,'' said Hisanori Sugawara, a 26-year-old computer operator, who also owns a PlayStation 2.
What the GameCube may lack in ``shoot 'em up'' type appeal, it makes up for in design. The bright-purple exterior, curved handle and convenient size will be a strong selling point in Japan, where products are bought for their ``kawaii,'' or cuteness, value.
That may be a timely commodity at a time when some game software publishers are re-evaluating their games in development so as not to offend in the wake of the hijacking attacks in the United States that are feared to have killed thousands.
Publisher Arush Entertainment has said it is thinking over a game in the pipeline featuring its legendary character Duke Nukem blasting his way through New York City. The game carries a scene depicting the now-toppled World Trade Center.
``Kawaii'' or not, though, Nintendo could suffer poor sales in the U.S. market, which is faced with the double whammy of a slowing economy and the possibility of a further cooling of consumer sentiment due to the tragic assault on its power centers.
Since Wednesday, the first trading day after the attacks, Nintendo's stock has fallen more than seven percent.
On Friday, it closed up 4.75 percent at 16,550 yen, tracing the 4.12 percent rise in the benchmark Nikkei 225 average.
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