Sony wins it all?
"The console war is over... PlayStation 2 has won." And with 30 million PS2 units sold compared to the four million for GameCube and Xbox it was difficult to argue with Sony America top dog Kaz Hirai's bold statement. Besides bragging about its substantial lead over its competitors, Sony once again gave a concerted push to its Network Adaptor, promising that gamers would be able to surf the net and play PS2 online - with games like Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 and TimeSplitters 2 - by the end of the year.
Microsoft also laid out its online plans by revealing its broadband-only Xbox Live service, which it stated would launch worldwide in autumn. Xbox boss J Allard believed the service would be "the world's biggest playground with the coolest rides." With games like Phantasy Star Online, Unreal Championship and Halo 2 flagged as Live compatible, it certainly had appeal. And with Microsoft pledging to spend $2 billion on Xbox support and development over five years, it was apparent that the newest entry to the console race was in for the long haul.
While Sony and Microsoft were both obsessing with online, Nintendo was thrilling attendees with possibly its best line-up of games to date. Mario Sunshine (the first new Mario platformer in six years) and a new Legend of Zelda (later subtitled Wind Waker) were revealed, and Miyamoto was on hand to demo both games at Nintendo's pre-show conference. Rather comically, the legendary developer couldn't find a sword and was unable to complete the Zelda level he was playing. D'oh!
