This week's haul at the PSN video store isn't as big as last week's, but hey, that one was a tough act to follow. Besides, we still have a good batch this week, starting with the director's cut of Daredevil. The Mothman Prophecies is also pretty good, but if you wanna load up on the creepy, Candyman will do the job. And BSG fans, the much-awaited finale is coming to the video store too. Hit the full article for more info.

Despite the woes that are plaguing the world markets, the video game industry is "likely to weather a recession quite well." This is according to everyone's favorite analyst, Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter. Unlike other forms of entertainment, video gaming is one of the least likely to be affected by a recession, according to Pachter.

More prophecies in the full article.

Just a few ticks away from the launch of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, are you holding up well to the wait? If you need more distractions to help the remaining time pass, we're offering up this collection of features that we're been running for the game. Check out the full article and let it be your portal to past posts.

Even with landmark titles under its belt, Grand Theft Auto, Manhunt, and BioShock aren't enough to cash in much dough for Take-Two Interactive. "The company doesn't appear to be able to make much money from its everyday business," said Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter.

Pachter pointed at other franchises, particularly "money-losing sports games," as reasons why he believes Take-Two is not a great investment right now. "Until we see evidence of better controls over work in process and greater diligence in project selection, we are not confident that the company will gain market share in future years," he said.

Among Pachter's prophecies were numbers for BioShock's sales, which he recently raised to two million from 1.3 million. Manhunt 2, after much delay and controversy, is about to hit the shelves and Pachter expects 500,000 copies sold the day it ships. The analyst also stepped his Take-Two revenue estimate for the fourth fiscal quarter up a bit, from US$ 292 million to US$ 300 million.

That said, Pachter doesn't think Electronic Arts will be interested in acquiring Take-Two. "EA’s culture is not conducive to open-ended delivery dates, artistic freedom, and incredibly violent games," he explained. He also claimed that sexual content in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and violence Manhunt 2 will not be tolerated by EA.

According to Pachter, Take-Two's franchises will also be replicas of EA's games, shooting down the idea of acquisition. Midnight Club is to Need for Speed, while both companies have their own share of sports games. Furthermore, he added, "Take-Two has a very low cash position."

One of the problems with prophecies and forecasts is that if you look too far ahead, you miss what's right in front of you.

Game industry analysts have had different sorts of opinions on who will come out on top at the end of the next-gen console race. While some have predicted Sony's downfall as a result of their current pricing strategy, the Yankee Group predicts Sony's dominance with the arrival of the PS3.

There's just one hitch, of course: the PS3 still isn't being manufactured, let alone sold.

A recent Gamespot interview with Sony Computer Entertainment's American President Kaz Hirai outlined the overall projection Sony has for the future, while at the same time keeping mum about certain topics. In addition to discussing the result of Yankee's prediction, Hirai also mentioned that point about the PS3 still not being in the manufacturing stage. Hirai says,

We haven't started manufacturing yet. Some of our ops guys were actually just in China, and also in Japan just reviewing the [production] lines and everything else. But they are, again, preparing as we speak to get the manufacturing going. We've not announced and we haven't set really a specific date to say, "As of this day we're going to start manufacturing."

Hirai was also somewhat evasive with launch titles, but also mentioned that the real fireworks display for new consoles happens a lot later. He said that everyone was still hedging their bets on one console or another and on what launch titles there will actually be. The same problem happens with the bold, yet reserved, predictions by market analysts on the future of the console wars. While it might seem like troubling news, as it's hard to imagine building out 2 million units or so two to three months before launch time, but there's still time, so it's not as bad as it looks.

In the end, despite the current worries of gamers and analysts alike about the future of the PS3 and the overall health of Sony's gaming market, all of this is still relative. As Hirai mentions, "it won't get locked down until about a month before launch," so we still have time to keep the optimism for Sony's prized handheld and new console out and about.