This is something any respectable XBOX or possible XBOX 2 owner should read...

MOORE: XBOX 2 REVELATIONS? YES PLEASE...

Microsoft' s corporate vice president gives us some console sequel nuggets to chew on

14:47 Microsoft corporate vice president Peter Moore has told how the Redmond giant has " no intention of losing" the next-generation console war in a recent interview with the Nikkei Business newspaper in Japan, while also speaking about that object of virulent speculation, Xbox 2.

Highlighting the Xbox faults he believes are responsible for the lackluster pickup of the console by the Japanese punter - too large, inadequate software for the market and delivered two years after PS2 - Moore goes on to comment in reference to the next generation of consoles and Xbox 2 that Microsoft will " not repeat these mistakes next time" .

A sleeker design and more suitable software - at least where the Japanese market is concerned software-wise - are obvious targets for Microsoft then (OK, a bit of a no-brainer that), with Moore reiterating " We will not be later than our rivals," words we' ve heard from the company on more than one occasion in connection with Xbox 2.

" The winner in the game industry is not decided in one generation," Moore told Nikkei, putting into words Microsoft' s strong commitment to the hotly contested console battlefield.

Dropping further hints about what to expect from the Xbox' s successor, Moore said that Microsoft plans to build on its online game plan set out with Xbox Live, the service' s user-friendly qualities and the likes of voice communication remaining very much part and parcel of an enhanced online package.

Reports also state that Moore additionally revealed in the Nikkei article that Microsoft is done and dusted with delivering all the necessary support tools for game development. Whether or not these are specifically Xbox 2 tools or more ' a close approximation' of wasn' t made clear.

Stuart Bishop