With so much mystery still looming around the rumored PS3 Slim and a possible PS3 price drop announcement, Microsoft's Xbox Euro VP Chris Lewis believes the Xbox 360 is still in a good place in the console race. According to Lewis, any announcement from their opposition won't disrupt their plan, which is also rumored to include countering Sony's move with a price cut of its own.

On the balmy shores of Normany, the console wars rage on and it seems Private Sony's gonna need some saving. Check out the full article for more details on the Console Wars: Europe.

(Editor's Note: And a wham, bam, thank you, ma'am! It's time for another recap in QuickPeek 38!)

While some of us hate numbers, it's still interesting to see them all lined up there looking pretty. From piratical statistics, calendar dates, new version release numbers, price tags, survey results on "bedroom pasttimes", error codes, and, oh yes, blobs doing arithmetic.

It's almost Christmas, folks, and you know that that means - plenty of shopping to do. Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft are sending out word even as they make their preparations, they will still be expecting shortages to start occurring on certain areas in the UK. To this end, each company's sent out their corresponding representative to reassure the fans that they'll do what they can to keep the expected holiday (relatively) sane. Visit the full article to read each representative's detailed announcements.

Like a vindictive juggernaut, Redmond Washington corporation Microsoft has launched verbal attacks at Sony's online strategy as they attempt to solidify its market position ahead of the arrival of PlayStation 3.

Just before E3 2006,  Sony provided an exhaustive demonstration of its next-generation OS online functionality. But Microsoft, now in its second generation of its successful Live service, dismisses the PS3 as attempting to play "catch up" in the online arena, including features already available on the Xbox.

"I'm flattered that they've followed our clear direction," MS representative  Chris Lewis says. "Plagiarism is a good thing - that in itself isn't such a problem, it's what the market wants. But we've known that's what the market wanted all along...it's good to see them catching up in that regard," he notes, adding "I think the service is still hazy in my view in terms of how it's really going to work for the consumer - how the pricing is going to work still to me seems very unclear."

At a press conference, Microsoft mogul Bill Gates announced the next step for their online service, the Cross Platform Live Anywhere initiative. Online presence is its biggest asset in the round of corporate battles, according to Microsoft.

"Sony talks about the online component - the analogy used was the air conditioning unit in a car. From our point of view, right from version one, online gaming was built right into the heart of the first Xbox. For us it was the engine; it wasn't some peripheral component people may or may not want to use. It was right at the heart of the proposition then and now," Lewis says. "I think we can be very confident that our service continues to develop. It's a fully connected, seamless environment - we're in a fantastic position there already."