The buzz in videogames is all about new hardware, including the imminent launch of Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Co.’s Wii consoles, along with the prospects for Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 in its sophomore holiday season.
The biggest money in games, though, is coming from older, less sexy machines such as Sony’s PlayStation 2, which has been out for six years, and the Nintendo DS portable console, which has been out for two years.
That should become apparent Thursday when Electronic Arts Inc., the world’s largest publisher of computer games by sales, reports financial results for the quarter. After a rough patch for publishers, Wall Street analysts have become more bullish on the videogame sector in recent months because of unexpectedly strong sales of software for older consoles.
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“I would say PS2 has been one of the two major surprises of this year, the other being how strong DS has been,” said John Taylor, an analyst at Arcadia Investment Corp. in Portland, Ore.
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