The egos connected with some of the gaming world’s most recognisable companies and figures are absolutely massive. Look out your window on any clear day and you might just see the tops of their heads looming across the horizon, eclipsing the sun and casting shadows big enough to confuse the changing of the world’s seasons. We’re talking BIG egos here… bear that in mind.

And, more often than not, with egoistic big headedness comes a tendency to boast, exaggerate… and sometimes just plain lie for your own gain, or that of the company you represent. Other reasons for spewing old porky pies might be related to the fear of a backlash if expectations aren’t met, or perhaps as a result of premature announcements released in good faith that crack, crumble and collapse as time passes and hype gathers.

The truth is, however, that regardless of motivation or reasoning, no one likes a liar. Sometimes a ‘bending of the truth’ is necessary and can even ultimately serve some good, but when our sensitive selves are relayed gaming information as gospel, we’re very much inclined to believe it. Friends and family of this writer were worried for his mental state after the recent GTA IV delay left him in an inconsolable, weeping mess for weeks afterwards.

GamerSquad has picked out a selection of the biggest deceptive statements of 2007 and listed them below for your perusal. Liar, liar pants on fire, says the old adage… well, consider the backsides of the following to be well and truly ablaze.


Grand Theft Auto IV will be released in October 2007
To the delight of millions of gamers, Rockstar Games confirmed that the highly anticipated GTA IV would hit the Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360 this coming October... only to make us all blubber like spoilt children at the beginning of August by revealing that it had been delayed until March 2008. Analysts claimed complications with the PS3 build of the game was behind the decision. Either way fans faithful to both waiting platforms were suitably annoyed, and Rockstar’s unfulfilled claims now exist as yet another reason why developers and publishers should hold off on scheduling release dates until their product is actually finished!


Microsoft: Xbox 360 is problem free
The giant leaps in marketplace progress forged by the Xbox 360 this past twelve months have been undeniably blighted by the huge number of worrying stories concerning malfunctioning hardware (read RRoD). Microsoft's resultant stony-faced denial concerning the existence of any major design flaws with its console was finally retracted in July 2007 as the horde of dying 360s continued to grow. In a related statement the Redmond-based software behemoth duly extended the warranty of Xbox 360 consoles from 1 year to 3 years as a result of "an unacceptable number of repairs" to machines after the ominous Red Ring of Death plague had set in.

For those as yet unaffected by the RRoD, it generally kicks just as the original 1 year warranty expires – more perfect timing by Microsoft.




The Nintendo Wii is a piece of shit!
At the Game Developer Conference in March of 2007, Electronic Arts’ Chris Hecker committed perhaps the most flagrantly inaccurate statement of the year when he announced to a panel of peers and journalists that Nintendo's latest home console was little more than a "piece of shit". No doubt slapped across the wrist by bosses concerned with possible business backlash from Nintendo, Hecker later detracted his statement – offering that the Wii was actually "well priced" and "innovative" rather than a hurriedly laid Mississippi Steamer.

Blossoming third-party developer support, the continuance of demand outstripping supply, and a bumper Christmas software line-up all now combine in the tail end of 2007 to further falsify Hecker’s initial moment of madness.


Sony: PS3 doesn't need force feedback
Late in 2006 Sony Corp. was more than a little keen to appease rising fanboy fury regarding the lack of Dual Shock force feedback in its new PlayStation 3, stressing that the benefits of the console's ‘new’ motion-sensing SIXAXIS controller far outweighed the relative expense and awkwardness of adding the much-loved rumble capability. SIXAXIS is the future, you don’t need Dual Shock, the Sony bigwigs chimed.

Of course, that was before the Japanese consumer electronics giant duly kissed and made up with Immersion (the haptics company that previously supplied them with force feedback technology and was suing Sony for patent infringement directly connected to Dual Shock). Following a sizeable monetary settlement in Immersion’s favour, it would now appear that SIXAXIS (widely criticised by industry players) is not quite as integral as Sony first suggested… especially as Dual Shock will indeed appear in future PlayStation 3 controllers. Tsk.


Sony: No PS3 price cut for at least two years
Back in February of this year Kimberly Otzman, a spokeswoman for Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA), was quoted as saying that, despite consumer calls, the next-gen PlayStation 3 console was unlikely to receive a price reduction for at least two years – similar to the history of the preceding PlayStation 2. However, fast-forward to July and, following months of poor hardware traction in all regions and dwindling software exclusives, Sony’s David Karraker suddenly announced that the stuttering 60GB console would indeed receive a $100 USD discount in North America, bringing its price down to $499 USD.

Verily, prospective PS3 consumers overwhelmed with joy danced naked in the streets as Amazon.com’s sales figures for Sony’s machine spiked massively as the price cut arrived. Soon after, however, suddenly disgruntled consumers scrambled for their clothes as Sony confirmed the price cut as a temporary stock clearing measure implemented to shift remaining stock of the 60GB PS3 in favour of the upcoming 80GB model – which would retail at the original PS3 price point of $599 USD. So, an extra 20GB of storage space (that most people will likely never use) for the old pocket-busting price point. Scandalous?


Sony: No PSP re-design plans in the pipeline
Sony’s penchant for industry deceit and absolute hokum also emerged beyond the core focus of its PlayStation 3, when the distinctly Pinocchio-esque company this year strongly debunked reports referring to an imminent PSP hardware re-design. Despite initial claims by Sony Computer Entertainment UK boss Ray Maguire, which he revealed during a "PSP in Education" initiative in March, Sony’s PR department quickly moved to quash any ‘new PSP’ rumours.

Specifically, Sony UK’s head of PR, Dave Wilson, jumped forth and said that Sony had "no immediate changes planned for PSP," but that a potentially revised model of the handheld console would perhaps be considered in the "long term." It would appear that ‘long term’ in Sony’s book of references equates to about 3 or 4 months, especially seeing as it proceeded to whip the covers off the new slimmer, lighter PSP (with improved battery life) during an official press conference at the E3 Summit in July. And, when factoring in that these alterations are unlikely to have happened during such a small time frame, the only conclusion left to draw is that Sony really is a stinkin’ liar.