- January 20
- Vivendi Universal releases the Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [568.32] [576.30] [577.84] [644.190] [1126.18] [1129.18]
- January 27
- Sega releases the Sonic Heroes video game for the Xbox, GameCube, and PlayStation 2 in the US. [568.52] [576.30] [1126.18]
- Encore releases the Daredevil: The Man Without Fear video game for the Xbox and PlayStation 2 in the US. [644.190] [1126.18]
- January (month)
- Top selling video game in the USA during the month: NFL Street for the PlayStation 2. [573.28]
- (month unknown)
- USA Today names Capcom's Viewtiful Joe as Best Video Game of 2003. [582.20]
- In New Zealand, Rockstar's game Manhunt is banned, due to being "injurious to the public good". [552.63]
- Electronic Gaming Monthly magazine declares the Nokia N-Gage handheld video game system the "Worst Idea Since New Coke". [552.86]
vvv advertisement vvv
^^^ advertisement ^^^
- Quote by Electronic Arts president and chief operating officer John Riccitiello, on the N-Gage: "When I picked that thing up, I knew it was a dog - it just feels stupid.". [596.63]
- February 2
- Vivendi Universal releases The Fast and the Furious video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [644.190] [1449.20]
- February 5
- Microsoft announces it will launch Xbox Live in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore in April. [597]
- February 9
- Nintendo releases the Metroid: Zero Mission video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. Price is US$29.99 [550.53,93] [577.34,92] [645.67] [779.25]
- Nintendo releases the limited edition two-tone Onyx/Platinum Game Boy Advance SP in the US. [552.70] [582.21]
- Square Enix releases the Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles for the GameCube in the US. [461.150] [574.9] [577.34,81] [869.19] [1162.13]
- February 14
- Nintendo releases the Game Boy Advance SP in classic NES-controller style colors in Japan. [1484.7]
- February
- Flash memory products manufacturer M-Systems announces it has signed a contract with Microsoft to create high-capacity removable storage devices for future versions of the Xbox video game system. [597]
- February 16
- THQ releases the MX Unleashed video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [577.34] [644.190]
- February 17
- Electronic Arts releases the James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing video game for the GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox in the US. [568.48] [573.86] [577] [588.15] [645.67] [1162.13]
- February 20
- The Fox Broadcasting Company airs The Fairly Oddparents TV show in the US. One character hands another a handheld video game system looking like a Nintendo Game Boy Color, saying "I want you to relax and play mindless video games..." [864]
- February 22
- In Japan, Microsoft sells 1000 white-case Xbox units for the second anniversary of the Xbox in Japan. All systems sell-out on the website in one day. [1466.70]
- February (month)
- Top selling video game in the USA for the month: Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles for the GameCube. [547.27] [581.26]
- (month unknown)
- Electronic Arts closes the Origin Systems game developer studio. [547.26]
- March 2
- Tecmo releases the Ninja Gaiden video game for the Xbox in the US. [568.60] [574.30] [577.34] [645.67] [730.163] [1449.20]
- Take 2 releases the Mafia video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [573.30] [576.30] [644.190] [1126.18] [1162.13]
- March 9
- Konami releases the Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes video game for the GameCube in the US. [573.30,79] [581.10] [644.190] [645.67]
- March 11
- Lions Gate Films releases the film Phil the Alien to theaters in Canada. A Nintendo Zapper light-gun controller is worn like a real gun. [936]
- March
- In San Jose, California, the Game Developers Conference is held. Sony unveils the first PlayStation Portable video game, Death, Jr.. The fourth annual Game Developers Choice Awards are announced: Game of the Year: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. [596.44] [600.22]
- The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences announces its 2004 Dice Awards: Outstanding Achievement, animation: Prince of Persia; Outstanding Achievement, game design: Prince of Persia; Outstanding Achievement, innovation: Prince of Persia; Outstanding Achievement, visual engineering: Prince of Persia; Outstanding Achievement, platform action-adventure: Prince of Persia; Console Game of the Year: Prince of Persia. Peter Molyneux is inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame. Molyneux invented the "God game" genre and created Fable. [581.18] [645.51]
- Former boxer Alexis Arguello files a lawsuit against Electronic Arts, Nintendo, and Sony for illegal use his likeness in the Knockout Kings series. [645.51]
- A confidential specification sheet detailing the Nintendo DS (code-named Nitro) is leaked to the Internet. The system will use touch-screen and button inputs, 67MHz processor, microphone, and 802.11 wireless connectivity. [600.22]
- March 22
- Nintendo releases the Pokémon Colosseum video game for the GameCube in the US. Price is US$49.99. [508.120] [550.61] [573.30,83] [579.34] [582.109]
- March 23
- Ubisoft releases the Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow video game for the Xbox in the US. [573.30] [644.44] [645.70] [1450.20]
- One year after the release of the Game Boy Advance SP in North America, over 6.5 million units have been sold in North America, a record for any game system in history. Total shipments of all Game Boy systems to date worldwide: 160 million. [585.C11]
- March 24
- Sony releases the Hard Disk Drive for the PlayStation 2 in the US. Capacity is 40 GB, price is $99. [475.38] [478.26] [479] [573.30] [584.B12] [588.16] [644.190]
- Sony releases the Sony releases the Final Fantasy XI video game for the PlayStation 2 in the US. [475.38] [478.26] [479] [573.30] [584.B12] [588.16] [644.190]
- March 26
- Namco releases the R: Racing Evolution video game for the GameCube in Europe. Included with the GameCube version is Pac-Man Vs., which uses a link cable for players to play part of the game on the Game Boy Advance. [1484.8]
- March 30
- Capcom releases the Resident Evil Outbreak video game for the PlayStation 2 in the US. [550.148] [573.30] [588.16] [606.2] [645.104] [834.17]
- Microsoft drops the price of the Xbox in the US from US$179.99 to US$149.99, and in Canada to CDN$199.99. [596.44] [597] [600.22]
- March (month)
- Top selling video game in the USA for the month: Ninja Gaiden for the Xbox. [566.32] [578.124]
- Top selling video game in Japan for the month: Dragon Quest V: Heaven's Bride for the PlayStation 2. [578.124]
- January-March
- Total sales of video games (hardware, software, accessories) in the USA during January to March: US$1.8 billion. [597]
- Total sales of portable video game systems in the USA during January to March: US$112 million. [597]
- April 5
- EA Sports releases the Fight Night 2004 video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [573.30] [645.70]
- April 6
- Acclaim releases the Alias video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US and Canada. [547.28] [577.34] [606.9]
- April 14
- Microsoft releases a Special Edition Xbox bundle with the Halo video game in the US. The system comes in a bright translucent green case, instead of the standard black. 200,000 packages are available, priced at US$169. [597] [1451.19]
- Nokia announces the N-Gage QD handheld video game system. The unit is a redesigned N-Gage, about 20 percent smaller, with more comfortable use as a cell-phone. The speaker and microphone are mounted on the front, and the multimedia card slot is located on the bottom edge. It is expected to go on sale starting in May in Europe. [597]
- April
- Nintendo alters the GameCube design, removing the digital AV out port, and the removable lid nameplate. [596.56]
- Microsoft updates Xbox Live to version 3.0. [818.56]
- Tiger Hill Studios purchases the film rights to Nintendo's Metroid series. Tiger Hill is owned by Hong Kong film director John Woo. [645.52]
- SNK Playmore releases the final game for the Neo Geo board for arcades. [1482.37]
- Pac Manhattan, by Frank Lantz, is played over several square blocks of New York City. [857.22]
- Microsoft launches the Xbox Live online gaming service in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. [599.20]
- April 20
- Eidos releases the Hitman Contracts video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US and Canada. [547.28] [606.9]
- April 27
- Capcom releases the Onimusha 3: Demon Siege video game for the PlayStation 2 in the US. [573.30,84] [606.9] [645.70]
- April (month)
- Top selling video game in the USA for the month: Fight Night 2004 for the PlayStation 2. [557.25] [578.124]
- May 2
- Fox Television airs the Malcolm in the Middle TV show in the USA. Part of the show takes place in a restaurant with video games, focusing on a dance game called "Jump Jump Dance Party!" [901]
- May 4
- Rockstar releases the Red Dead Revolver video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the USA. [606.9] [645.71]
- Crave releases the Future Tactics: The Uprising video game for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Xbox in the US and Canada. [566.36] [573.30] [606.10]
- Sony releases the Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain video game for the PlayStation 2 in the US and Canada. [428.60] [566.36] [606.10]
- May 5
- Activision releases the Shrek 2 video game for the GameCube, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, and Xbox in the US. [566.36,67] [578.112] [581.116] [606.10]
- May 6
- Electronic Arts releases the Samurai Warriors video game for the PlayStation 2 in the US and Canada. [566.36] [606.10]
- May 7
- Vivendi Universal Games releases the Van Helsing video game for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, and Game Boy Advance in the USA. [547.12] [566.36] [578.114] [596.34] [606.2,9]
- May 10
- Microsoft holds a press conference in Los Angeles, California. A video is shown titled The Novice, with Donald Trump poking fun at fake Sony executives, and praising Microsoft executives for their online video game strategies. Microsoft announces it will release Halo 2 with multiplayer support on November 9. Electronic Arts announces it will begin including Xbox Live support in its games. Sale to date of the Xbox: 14 million. [597] [613.16] [818.19] [1026.4]
- At the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California, the Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy concert is held, running for two hours, sponsored by Square Enix. Conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya leads the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and Los Angeles Master Chorale performing fourteen songs composed by Nobuo Uematsu from the Final Fantasy video games. [541.44] [547.44] [553.85] [565.39] [566.36] [573.24] [578.25] [645.54]
- May 11
- At the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, California, Nintendo unveils the Nintendo DS handheld video game system. It features ARM 9 3D processor, ARM 7 2D processor, dual backlit 3-inch 256x192 LCD screens, max 262,144 colors, 3D capabilities on both screens, 16-channel sound, rechargeable battery, 4MB RAM, 656KB VRAM, DS compact card slot, Game Boy Advance cartridge slot, wireless 16-player local communications, voice recognition, 802.11b wi-fi connectivity, D-pad controller, face and shoulder buttons, touch screen with stylus, headphone and microphone jacks. Nintendo also announces it is working on a new console code named "Revolution". [562.31] [566.36] [597] [613.16] [1090.52] [1517.10]
- In Los Angeles, California, Sony CEA unveils the Sony PlayStation Portable handheld video game system. It features dual 333 MHz MIPS R4000 processors, 32 MB main RAM, 4 MB embedded DRAM, 4.3-inch diagonal 16:9 wide screen backlit 480x272 pixel TFT LCD 16 million color display, 1.8 GB Universal Media Disc drive, Memory Stick Pro Duo slot, USB 2.0 slot, 802.11b wi-fi connectivity, D-pad controller, face and shoulder buttons, analog joystick, headphone and microphone jacks, USB 2.0 slot, Memory Stick PRO Duo slot, IrDA infrared, stereo speakers, lithium-ion battery. Size is 170 x 74 x 23mm, weight is 260 grams. Release schedule is December in Japan, March in the US. Sony drops the price of the PlayStation 2 in the US from US$179 to US$149. [565.32] [566.36] [578.32] [597] [613.16] [659.32] [1517.12]
- Electronic Arts releases The Sims: Bustin' Out video game for the N-Gage in the US. [578.123]
- May
- At the Electronics Entertainment Expo, Infinium Lab unveils the Phantom video game system. It features AMD Athlon XP 2500+ processor, Nvidia GeForce FX 5700 Ultra graphics processor, Ethernet connector, Dolby 5.1 sound output, keyboard and mouse. Price is to be US$199, or $29.99 per month for two-year online subscription service. [578.40]
- Microsoft shows the Xbox Live Arcade service, which allows gamers to download and play classic arcade, puzzle, and other games for small fees. [645.54]
- Sammy announces it will merge with Sega in a stock swap. [645.54]
- Majesco releases Game Boy Advance Video cartridges of various Nickelodeon cartoon TV shows. Each cartride holds two episodes in 45 minutes of video. [581.19] [1517.16]
- May 17
- J.C. Padilla scores 2,181,619,994,299,256,480 (2 quintillion) on Giga Wing 2 on the Dreamcast, setting a record for the highest score on any game. [778.45]
- May 18
- The Fox Broadcasting Company airs The Fairly Oddparents TV show in the US. A character plays with a home video game system. [865]
- Total shipments of PlayStation (including PS one) worldwide to date: 100 million. [659.42]
- May 25
- Nintendo releases the Mario vs. Donkey Kong video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US and Canada. [566.36] [580.17] [581.78] [606.10]
- May (month)
- Top selling video game in the USA for the month: Red Dead Revolver for the PlayStation 2. [565.38] [1163.12]
- June 1
- Vivendi Universal releases The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay video game for the Xbox in the US. [566.69] [578.118] [606.11] [645.71] [1451.20]
- June 7
- Nintendo releases The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventure for the Game Cube in the US. [557.28,84] [586.C7] [596.25] [1438.47]
- Nintendo releases the Game Boy Advance SP in classic NES-controller style colors in the US; price is about $100. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25] [1517.14]
- Nintendo releases the Super Mario Bros. video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [557.28] [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Donkey Kong video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Ice Climber video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [557.28] [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Pac-Man video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Bomberman video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases The Legend of Zelda video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [557.28] [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Excitebike video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Nintendo releases the Xevious video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [566.24] [581.19] [596.25]
- Sega releases the Sonic Advance 3 video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [578.123] [606.11] [779.41]
- June 8
- Atlus releases the Shining Force video game for the Game Boy Advance in the US. [557.28] [581.84] [606.11]
- June 14
- The Fox Broadcasting Company airs The Fairly Oddparents TV show in the US. A character plays a "CosBox" video game system hooked up to a television. [866]
- Midway releases the Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the US. [578.110] [606.11] [644.190] [645.71] [1451.20]
- June 15
- Atari releases the Shadow Ops: Red Mercury video game for the Xbox in the USA. [1401.35]
- June
- In Shanghai and other Cantonese areas of China, Nintendo subsidiary company iQue introduces the Game Boy Advance handheld video game system. Price is about US$84. [645.56]
- Nintendo releases the WarioWare video game for the Game Boy Advance in China. [645.56]
- June 21
- Atari releases the Driver 3 video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in the USA. [557.28] [606.11] [1451.20]
- Nintendo begins releasing Game Boy Advance Video cartridges with up to 90 minutes of animated television shows. First cartridges are for 30 minute Pokemon shows. [580.17] [581.19]
- June 22
- Capcom releases the Mega Man Anniversary Collection video game for the GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and PlayStation 2 in the US. [561.20] [566.36] [578.111] [606.10]
- June 29
- Activision releases the Spider-Man 2 video game for the Xbox, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and N-Gage in the US. [557.28,53] [561.49] [578.81] [606.11] [818.14] [1026.20] [1451.20]
- June 30
- Total sales of video game hardware and software in the US during January-June: US$3.4 billion. [597]
- June (month)
- Top selling video game in the US for the month: Spider-Man 2 for the PlayStation 2. [746.148] [1164.18]
- (month unknown)
- Midway acquires Paradox Development, Surreal Software, and Inevitable Entertainment. [645.20]
- SSD announces the XaviXPORT interactive gaming console. Special input devices translate player movements onto the television screen. Each game includes a multiprocessor chip. Price is US$79.99 for the unit and US$49.99 for games. [658.24]
- In the US, the Haitian American Coalition protests a mission in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City where the main character is told to "Kill all the Haitians". Publisher Rockstar issues a public apology, and removes the dialog from subsequent disc pressings. [768.68]
- Cam Allen sets a new time record for completing the Super Mario Bros. video game on the Nintendo Entertainment System: 21 minutes 33 seconds. [866.140]
- The University of Denver in Colorado begins offering an undergraduate major in video game development. [597]
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