I've emailed our Nintendo of America PR contact to ask if they'd like to add anything. Likely, the company's official response is along the lines of what they told us on Thursday, that they won't comment on rumor or speculation.

I would say it's a solid bet we'll put an end to all of this with some announcement at Tokyo Game Show this week.

Wii Price Cut Confirmed [Nintendojo via Go Nintendo]

Speaking to Eurogamer, Rein, the Epic vice president, said Sony has "their own financial issues to solve and lowering the price of the console would probably have made their situation worse,"

"They will get around to it in their own good time," he said. "If you're willing to look at this as a long-term play, they're going to be just fine."

Epic's Mark Rein [Eurogamer via GamesIndustry.biz]

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, Microsoft's VP of the Interactive Entertainment Business Chris Lewis dismissed Sony's announcement, suggesting that the key to staying competitive in the console market lay in developing the current generation consoles.

"This move from Sony at the end of the PS2's life cycle is not unexpected. We believe, however, that the future lies in the growth of current generation consoles and Xbox 360, as the fastest growing games console last year, with sales up over 80 per cent, will continue to drive the market.

Essentially this is the corporate equivalent of rolling your eyes and muttering "whatever", perhaps to cover abject relief over the fact that Sony didn't lower the price of the PlayStation 3, a move that really would have give Microsoft a run for their money.

Microsoft dismisses PlayStation 2 price cut [GamesIndustry.biz]

Starting tomorrow, the price of the PlayStation 2 in the states drops to $99. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe has released a statement saying that the European price will be dropping to EUR 99. That leaves our friends in the UK, who according to a statement issued to Eurogamer, won't be seeing a price cut whatsoever, remaining at its GPB 99 price point.

This is more than likely due to the voliatile state of the British Pound, which caused Nintendo to raise the trade price of the Wii console earlier this month.

Sorry, United Kingdom. You all can come over here and borrow our price cut if you'd like.

No PlayStation 2 price cut for the UK News [Eurogamer]

Or could it be something completely different? Rumors have been doing little twirly things all over the internet over the past few weeks regarding a potential PlayStation 3 price cut, and while our first thought was "Why would they announce it several days after GDC?", apparently they are indeed announcing something several days after GDC. Go figure.

We're leaning towards a price cut, but we've got a sneaking suspicion that it's the PlayStation 2 dropping to $99, and not a cut for the PlayStation 3.

All we know so far is that they're announcing something. There's only one thing to do now. Let the wild speculation begin! What do you think/hope/dream Sony is announcing?

Citing NPD numbers as well as industry analysts, the article points out that November sales for the PS3 had dropped 19% from November 2007, with December sales expected to be either flat or lower that the year previous, indicating that Sony's target of 10 million consoles sold during the fiscal year might well be unattainable. The article also notes that rival Nintendo doubled sales from the previous November, with Xbox 360 sales seeing an 8% rise.

The article offers a rather gloomy outlook for Sony as a whole. The recession has not only stopped folks from buying pricey electronics like televisions and digital cameras, it has made them more cost-conscious when it comes to which game consoles they are buying.

One of the PlayStation 3's key non-gaming selling points - the inexpensive Blu-ray player - has been rendered moot, as the market sees stand-alone players that run for $200. Between that fact and the downturn in the economy, Sony's strategy for the PS3 seems to be backfiring. It isn't that it wasn't a sound strategy - it's just that the economy suddenly became hostile to high prices.

So the price is the main problem right now, but cutting prices would push the company even more into the red. It's a catch 22 that must weigh heavily on the bosses over at Sony. Cut prices for greater losses in the hope that it will generate enough sales to compensate for the difference. Greater sales equals a larger install base which equals more PlayStation 3 exclusives to keep the fans happy.

Here's hoping Sony can pull out of the dive it's taking financially and reach the heights of success it's lovely black console deserves.

Hope Fades for PS3 as a Comeback Player [Wall Street Journal]

Some retailers are reportedly showing 100% increases in sales of all Xbox models with up to six times more sales between Friday September 5th - Sunday 7th compared to the previous weekend.

Granted, these are Microsoft's figures, so they may have been given a bit of a spit and polish — still, Sony & Nintendo must be eying the holiday end of the calendar and doing a bit of chin stroking right about now.

Full text of corporate gloating after the jump...

Subject: Media Alert: Xbox 360 console sales surge post-price drop

Coming off the heels of the console price drop last week, Microsoft Xbox 360 sales have surged, with retailers reporting over 100% sales lift for all Xbox 360 models compared to the previous weekend. Additionally, retailers are reporting that between Friday, Sept. 5 and Sunday, Sept. 7, some Xbox 360 models were selling at six times the rate they were the weekend prior.

At $199, Xbox 360 is now not only the most affordable next-generation console available, but it also packs more entertainment punch per dollar than any other consumer electronics device connected to your TV. Xbox 360 invites you into a limitless world where the best games, movies and TV shows live side by side with your personal pictures and music library, and the experience is ready to share anytime with friends in your living room or across the globe through Xbox LIVE.

As if the British economy wasn't looking dark enough - now we face another Christmas of not-that-cheap Xboxes.

"Pricing is handled on a region-by-region basis," said a killjoy Microsoft spokesperson, "We do not have a price drop in this region to announce."

An Xbox Arcade will set you back £159.99 ($281.35) in the UK, while an Elite can be obtained on the open market in exchange for a kidney or other major organ.

Microsoft says no Xbox 360 "price drop" in the UK [Pocket Lint]

Microsoft to Cut Xbox 360 Pro Price [Wall Street Journal (sub required)]

Rumours suggest Xbox 360 price cut this month [GamesIndustry.biz]

Xbox 360 HD DVD Player price drop (now US $129.99) [Xbox Live's Major Nelson - Thanks Scott!]

Sony to put cheaper PS3 in play [The Hollywood Reporter]

Now technically it could just be the announcement of the 80GB system for Europe and not a price cut, so don't count Luke out of the analyzing game yet! There is still a chance he can make Pachter proud.

Sony to announce new PS3 Euro deals [GamesIndustry.biz]

From GPB 149.99 and EUR 199.99 the handheld will now go for GPB 129.99 and EUR 169.99 respectively. This means that a savvy American on holiday in Europe at the beginning of May could, at current conversion rates, can purchase a PSP for the equivalent of $250.00, the price we paid at launch two years ago. International economics make my head hurt. Michael Fahey

Sony cuts Euro price of PSP [GamesIndustry.Biz]

Yuji Fujimori wrote in a note Tuesday that lowering the cost of the game console, which competes with Microsoft's XBox 360 and Nintendo's Wii, will not undermine the unit's long-term profitability.

Sony's stand on the price cut issue remains muddled. Last we heard it was not likely for another two years. At this point I think they're waiting to see how things go in Europe later this week before making any long-term plans.

I have a feeling the PlayStation 3 is the best thing that ever happened to video game industry analysts. I'm imagining drunken 2AM collect calls from analyst bars to Sony for slurred 'I love you guys' speeches. Michael Fahey

PlayStation 3 price cut may be ahead [CNNMoney via Gamasutra]

Packed with analysts and those pesky hard numbers, this Dow Jones story doesn't paint a very pretty picture for the Playstation 3, but it is mostly a rehash of what we already know: The PS3 isn't doing so great out of the box, but will likely stabilize and do just fine given enough time.

What we didn't know, but I certainly suspected, is that Sony still plans to stick to their plans for the console, including not dropping the price for another few years and adding music and movies to the Playstation store.

Although analysts say price reductions would benefit PS3 sales, Sony isn't likely to make any price cuts for at least another two years, said Kimberly Otzman, a spokeswoman for Sony Computer Entertainment America. She noted a similar time frame for lowered prices for the PS2. "We probably expect the same for PS3," Otzman said, adding that while the console's price is higher than competitors', it comes completely packaged so consumers don't have to buy extra equipment or attachments." Meanwhile, Sony has said it is looking into expanding into music and movie downloads via the PS3, which comes equipped with the new high-definition DVD format - called Blu-ray.

Sony had a lot of momentum from the PS2 going into the PS3 and I think they bet on that momentum getting through this predictably harsh launch, the question is whether it will be enough to carry them over the hump. Brian Crecente

Sony Computer Entertainment of America's John Koller says that there will be no PSP price cuts this year. (Guess that leaves next year?) Instead there will be 110 UMD games release, bringing the grand total to 230 titles. Good news, indeed. Says Koller:

We don't neccessarily see the need to cut the price... We need to offer broader value and introduce new consumers to what the PSP can do.

Which is? LOL.

We kid, Sony. Koller notes that more will be revealed about how the PSP will interact with the PLAYSTATION 3. And by "more," we hope that isn't just as a rearview mirror for driving games. Brian Ashcraft

No Price Cut [Games Industry]

Citing a Taiwanese OEM component maker, Digitimes is reporting that Microsoft is planning to cut the price of their premiere Xbox 360 console to $300.

Msoft Taiwan denies the reports, claiming that it is bad information, but Digitimes says their sources have confirmed the price cut and that Microsoft has negotiated reduced production costs for the console to gear up for the reduction.

The manufacturers estimate that the total production cost can be reduced by 15-20% due to diminishing costs for most components along with increasing production scales and decreasing defect rates, the sources pointed out.

The article goes on to state that part of the reasoning behind the price cut is so Microsoft can bundle the HD-DVD player with the console for $399 down the line.

This sounds very fishy to me. Why not just wait until you're ready to bundle to do the price cut? And why does Msoft have to be so much less expensive than the PS3 when including the HD-DVD? I'd think they'd just want to be the same price or a tad under. Thoughts? Brian Crecente

Microsoft Rumored to Cut Xbox 360 Price by $US 100 [Digitimes]
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Upon industry analyst P.J. McNealy's prediction that a PSP price cut loomed, Sony has issued a retort: "No frickin' way."

"Currently we have no plans to cut the price of the PSP at this time."

Sony better have a hell of a line-up for the next year if they aren't planning on dropping the price: currently, there's just no way you could sell me one. Of course, that all may very well change when Vice City Stories and Silent Hill: Origins hits. Florian Eckhardt

Sony dismisses rumours of PSP price cut [Games Industry]