It has been a very good week for those awaiting the PlayStation 3 launch. After holding its cards close to its chest for months, Sony organized a Gamers' Day event in San Francisco, where it showed off the next-gen console. While not earth-shattering, the event did yield some important nuggets of information about the PS3's online network, its Sixaxis controller, and its launch plans.

　　The PS3's online component--which, unlike Xbox Live, doesn't have a separate name--will use real-world currency instead of points and will offer a selection of PlayStation 2 and original PlayStation games for download. It will also offer pick-up-and-play arcade-style games, including Criminal Crackdown from God of War creator David Jaffe. However, it will not offer a system-wide achievement system like the Xbox 360.

　　As far as the Sixaxis goes, its motion-sensing capabilities will be built into several of the PS3's 21 launch titles. Players will be able to use its tilt sensor to snap the ball in Madden NFL 07, grind rails in Tony Hawk's Project 8, put spin on balls in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07, and dribble in NBA 2K7. Each PS3 will come with one Sixaxis, but the controller can also be bought separately for $49.99. However, the wireless remote's rechargeable battery will be built in, meaning it will have to be sent in to Sony when it inevitably runs out of juice--or replaced entirely.

　　While Sony Computer Entertainment America executives were celebrating in California, officers of its parent company were likely drowning their sorrows in Japan. Sony's stock was clobbered on Wednesday after it revised its earnings forecast for the financial year ending March 31, 2007. In a statement, the consumer electronics giant said it now expects a group net profit of 80 billion yen ($674 million) for the full fiscal year. That figure is 38 percent below the 130 billion yen ($1.1 billion) net profit it had forecast in July. The company blamed higher-than-expected PS3 hardware manufacturing costs and cooling PSP and PS2 sales for the downward revision.

　　Though light on Nintendo news--other than THQ's confirmation of four titles for the Wii launch--the week did have several major stories on the Xbox 360 front. Half-Life 2 developer Valve Software announced that it has readied a version of its Source engine for development of Xbox 360 games, and Lumines Live debuted on Xbox Live Arcade. However, the biggest news for Xbox fans came on Friday, when word came that the two studios backing the big-screen version of Halo had dropped out of the project, leaving it in limbo.

　　MONDAY

　　First US PS3 TV ad rolls out?

　　THQ confirms Wii launch quartet

　　Valve offers Source for 360

　　eBay pulls plug on PS3 auctions

　　CEA KO's game summit plans

　　TUESDAY

　　Ubisoft spins Wii wheels

　　Neverwinter Nights 2 sees golden dawn

　　Knights of the Nine ride on 360, PC next month

　　MumboJumbo working on PSP

　　Two UK retailers ban Bully

　　WEDNESDAY

　　Xbox Live hits 4 million users

　　Sony slashes annual profit forecast by 38 percent

　　Actors support Tiberium Wars

　　Xbox Live hits 4 million users

　　Gears of War won't turn in Germany

　　THURSDAY

　　PS3 online, Sixaxis shown off at Sony Gamers' Day

　　EA working on 30 PS3 games

　　PS3's downloadable games confirmed

　　21 PS3 games available by end of '06

　　Q&A: PS3 launch endgame with Kaz Hirai

　　FRIDAY

　　Halo movie in flux

　　Bloomberg: PS3 may miss shipment targets

　　WWE suing THQ and Jakks again

　　No Gamerscores for PS3

　　XBL's Greenberg calls PS3 online a "knockoff"

　　RUMORS OF THE WEEK

　　100GB Xbox 360 HD on the way?

　　Grand Theft Auto IV getting episodic on PS3?

　　PS3 downloadable games revealed? (now confirmed)

　　Lumines Live on XBLA this week? (now confirmed)

　　RELEASES

　　Shippin' Out October 16-20: BF 2142, Bully, Double Agent, WTF

　　CHARTS

　　Bestbuy.com best sellers: October 8-14

　　US PC game charts: October 1-7

　　UK Game Charts: October 7-14

　　Japan game charts: October 9-15

　　Aussie game charts: October 2-8