Nintendo’s still not ready to spill all the beans about the 
3DS, its handheld game system that projects stereoscopic 3D images without the need for special glasses, but it’s getting close.
The company cryptically announced it would give details of a ‘new product’ on Sept. 29. And while it’s possible the company has something unknown up its sleeve, most industry observers expect it will use that date to give the launch date and price for the 3DS.
Although some parties thought the eReader would fall 
by the wayside when the iPad hit shelves, Amazon is making an emphatic statement to the contrary. The online retailer has unveiled a new, upgraded Kindle device as well as a new lower-priced model.
The new Kindle, like the old one, boasts a 6-inch screen, but uses a newer type of e-Ink – the same that’s used in the high-end Kindle DX device. It’s also 21 percent smaller, has twice as much storage (4 GB) and Amazon says it has an improved battery life as well.
July 27 is “Starcraft II” day. And while that might not mean a lot to some people, for others it’s reason for celebration.
Twelve years after the original “Starcraft” hit PCs and became a cultural phenomenon, Blizzard Entertainment is trying to bottle lightning for a second time. And no one is betting against them.
Following several days of rumors, The Walt Disney Company 
has confirmed that it has bought social game developer Playdom, a move that dramatically expands the company’s footprint in one of the fastest growing segments of the video game world.
Disney is paying $563.2 million for the company – as well as a performance-linked earn out for investors of up to $200 million. That’s a substantial premium over the $400 million Electronic Arts paid for Playfish, a larger company in the space, last November.
Disney’s taste for social gaming could be bigger 
than many people first believed.
The Wall Street Journal and others have reported that the Mouse is in talks to buy social games company Playdom for an estimated $500 million or more. No deal has been formally announced, and neither company is commenting on the reports. If completed, the acquisition would be the second notable expansion by Disney’s gaming arm this month.
GameStop has taken a few knocks for being behind the times when
it comes to digital distribution, but now the brick and mortar retailer is showing at least some awareness of the online world. It just might not be exactly what investors were hoping for.
The company has launched the Facebook game “Gangsta Zombies” through its Jolt Online Gaming arm. It’s the second social media game the company has released.
The BBC has seen a lot of buzz surrounding this season’s
“Doctor Who,” with the recasting of the titular role as well as the show’s omnipresent companion. Now it’s hoping that excitement will carry over into the gaming world.
The broadcaster has released the first two chapters of an episodic game based on the series (and featuring voice work by Matt Smith and Karen Gillan) to the U.S. and other territories. (U.K. gamers got their hands on it last month.)
While physical sales still hold a dominant position over 
digital downloads when it comes to videogame consoles, retail is in danger of losing that spot with PC gamers.
A study from the NPD Group, which tracks videogame sales, finds that digital downloads of PC games essentially reached parity with retail sales in 2009. Online purchases of full-game PC titles hit 21.3 million in the U.S. last year, compared with 23.5 million units purchased at stores.
Microsoft on Tuesday announced that Kinect,
its new gesture-recognition controller for the Xbox 360, will retail for $150 when it hits stores Nov. 4. That is in line with what the gaming world was expecting — but it may make the launch of the long-awaited system a bit less spectacular than people were hoping.
The company says the chief goal of Kinect is to attract new users to the Xbox 360. To achieve this, Microsoft will also offer a larger bundle, which includes an Xbox 360 (with 4GB of storage), a Kinect and “Kinect Adventures” for $299.
Looks like the rumors were pretty much spot-on when it came 
to Kinect pricing. Microsoft has announced that its new gesture-recognition peripheral will retail for $150 when it hits stores this November. That price will include a bundled version of the “Kinect Adventures” game.
Microsoft’s main focus with Kinect is to attract new users to the Xbox 360, so it will also offer a larger bundle, which includes an Xbox 360 (with 4GB of storage), a Kinect and “Kinect Adventures” for $299.
Chris Morris: Journalist 