Source: See below.

What we heard: Hardware rumor-mongers got a twofer this week involving the next generation of Microsoft's Xbox console and Nintendo's DS handheld. The latter came courtesy of a report on hardware blog Bright Side News (BSN), which reported that Nvidia has landed the contract to provide the chipsets for the DS and DSi's as-yet-unannounced successor.

"According to our confidential sources, Nintendo is going to use Tegra System-on-Chip processor for the successor of DS/DSi handheld console," reported the site. Currently, the Tegra line powers a series of small computer and multimedia devices, including the just-released Zune HD, which will be getting 3D games later this year.

Reportedly, the graphics chip-maker offered the least complicated option for the next-gen DS. "Unlike the current design, Nvidia offered a single-chip proposal to Nintendo, a company famous for keeping the hardware platform absolutely simple." The current generation of DS Lites and DSi's use two ARM-architecture chips to handle both graphics and processing.

BSN expects the new DS to be unveiled at the 2010 Tokyo Game Show next fall, around the same time Microsoft is expected to launch the Xbox 360's motion-sensing system, Project Natal. However, it was the 360's successor that was the subject of another report involving Nvidia's archrival, AMD-owned ATI.

Tech blog Fudzilla is citing unnamed "industry sources" as confirming Microsoft has struck a deal with ATI to provide graphics processors (GPUs) for the next generation of Xboxes. The Canadian chip firm currently supplies the GPUs for both the Wii and Xbox 360, with Nvidia supplying Sony with the PlayStation 3's RSX graphics processor.

Fudzilla's sources also echo analysts, executives, and developers as saying the next generation of hardware won't arrive anytime soon. "The consoles refresh [sic] was supposed to happen in 2010 but due to the recession both Microsoft and Sony have decided to push its plans for 2012 [sic] and keep the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 alive for more than it was originally planned."

The official stories: "Microsoft does not comment on rumors or speculation."--Microsoft rep.

"We don't comment on rumor or speculation." -- Nintendo spokesperson.

Bogus or not bogus?: Both sound plausible. Nintendo will be looking for higher-fidelity graphics for the next DS, and anyone who has seen a Zune HD knows what Tegra can provide them. As for the Xbox rumor, no one has blamed the 360's woes on ATI's GPU, instead pointing the finger at Microsoft's design choices. So having the software giant reenlist the hardware provider seems completely reasonable.

Source: Game-info site Destructoid.

What we heard: Some 121 years after they were committed, the Jack the Ripper murders remain a subject of interest. One reason is that the case was never solved, despite a massive effort by London's Scotland Yard, then (and still) considered one of the best police forces in the world. Another reason was the grisly nature of the crimes, which saw at least five prostitutes horrifically mutilated with surgical skill.

While posterity will remember the Jack the Ripper case as a grotesque chapter of the Victorian Era, unconfirmed reports say a unique historical reimagining may be on the way--in game form. Following reports that Visceral Games, the internal Electronic Arts studio behind Dante's Inferno and the forthcoming Dead Space 2, was making a game based on the copyright-free Jack the Ripper scenario, Destructoid is claiming to have the first details on the project.

Surprisingly, the game will not have players hunt down Jack the Ripper--but will have them play him instead. The site cites unnamed sources as saying the Ripper character is in fact a Van Helsing-like "supernatural slayer protecting people from demons, vampires and other evil monsters." To do so, he'll have a variety of weapons and abilities, including being able to slow down time.

The official story: "We have nothing to offer at this time." -- An EA rep.

Bogus or not bogus?: Trademark filings prove that EA has the intent of doing something game- and Jack the Ripper-related. But whether that entails tearing the entrails out of demon-possessed prostitutes is another matter. The fact that the Grand Theft Auto series allows players to comically murder virtual hookers made it a moral whipping boy in the mainstream media. Given the gory nature of Visceral's titles, any celebration of one of history's most notorious serial killers might prove too controversial.

Source: The ever-popular Internet Movie Database.

What we heard: Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft universe is nothing if not sprawling, thanks to some 15 years of storyline development across games and novels. The developer's expansive narrative tradition offers a plethora of options for the upcoming movie set in the Warcraft universe. However, as of August's BlizzCon 2009, director Sam Raimi had not announced any details about what parts of Blizzard lore would be the foundation for his film's script.

Now, though, it appears as if details on the Legendary Pictures-backed production have slipped out, courtesy of popular online movie database IMDB. According to the silver-screen depository, the upcoming Warcraft film now bears the subtitle "The Rise of the Lich King," indicating it will draw from the same source material as 2008's best-selling World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King.

The Lich King has proven to be fertile source material for Blizzard. Aside from the WOW expansion, the story of the Lich King was handled in Christie Golden's novel Arthas: Rise of the Lich King, which was named to the New York Times' Best-seller list within a week of going on sale earlier this year.

As its title implies, the novel tells an expanded version of the human storyline seen in Blizzard's 2002 real-time strategy game Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos and the Wrath of the Lich King WOW expansion. It sees the benevolent paladin prince Arthas Menethil corrupted by the runeblade Frostmourne and turned into an undead lord of unspeakable evil.

One other point of interest from the IMDB listing, Warcraft: The Rise of the Lich King now bears an expected release date of 2011. As part of BlizzCon 2007, Legendary CEO Thomas Tull said that the film would be live-action with a $100 million budget and would be out by 2009--a release date it obviously missed.

The official story: Blizzard Entertainment had not returned requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: While often trusted by industry professionals, IMDB is far from a reliable source, given that information can easily be added to the database without a thorough vetting of the material. As such, bogus that anything is official, though the Lich King storyline does seem to be working out pretty well for Blizzard. The critically hailed expansion sold over 2.8 million copies worldwide in less than 24 hours when it launched last November. As of the end of August, it had sold nearly 2 million units in the US alone.

Source: An interview with Lionhead Studios head Peter Molyneux by Dutch site GameKings.

What we heard: At its E3 2009 press briefing, Microsoft revealed that Lionhead was working on Milo, a simulation game that uses the motion--and emotion--sensing qualities of Project Natal. Two months later at GamesCom in Germany, Molyneux took the wraps off Fable III, another Xbox 360 exclusive from the Microsoft-owned, UK-based studio.

Given Molyneux's involvement with both Fable III and Natal, it stands to reason that the former might feature some connectivity with the latter. However, the GameKings interviewer expressed regret at having read that the game wouldn't be using Natal. The journalist said he felt it would be ideal for Fable III's gameplay, which casts players as a king passing judgment on subjects.

After joking about how talking about Natal projects could get him assassinated, Molyneux clarified things. "Let me get one thing straight. I have not said that we are not going to have Natal in Fable III." [Emphasis added.]

Then, motioning as though he were holding a 360 controller, Molyneux continued: "All I've really said is that it's a controller experience, but that doesn't mean there isn't going to be any Natal. Do you really think, knowing me, as maybe you do over the years, that I wouldn't want to use something like Natal?! I mean, that's just mad, man!"

The official story: Microsoft did not respond to requests for clarification as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Probably not bogus. Microsoft would love to have a first-party game of Fable III's stature use Natal in order to spur sales when it launches next year. And, by his own account, Molyneux wants to use the technology.

However, it may be a while until the public learns anything concrete. Before being asked about Natal, Molyneux bragged about how much he hasn't said about Fable III. "I haven't even told you what we're doing on the gameplay side," boasted the veteran developer. "My trick with the press is to leave the most exciting thing for later. There's plenty of gameplay stuff coming."

Source: See below.

What we heard: So far, 2009 has seen a drought of role-playing games, with fans of the genre subsisting on a steady stream of alternately tepidly and well-reviewed Fallout 3 expansions. All that was to change in October, though, when three high-profile RPGs were set to launch: BioWare's dark fantasy Dragon Age: Origins, Obsidian Entertainment's espionage RPG Alpha Protocol, and Gearbox's cheeky, postapocalyptic "role-playing shooter" Borderlands.

Now, following the delay of Dragon Age to November, another of the October 2009 RPG trinity appears to have slipped--all the way until next year. GameStop is now listing Alpha Protocol as shipping on June 1, 2010. Meanwhile Amazon's Canadian store has it as arriving in North America on June 30, 2010. The date change comes just over one week before the game's October 6 launch date on the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360, which was announced in July. As recently as August 27, Obsidian staffers were saying the project was still on schedule.

The official story: Obsidian reps routed inquiries to Alpha Protocol's publisher, Sega, which had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Likely not bogus. Two unconnected retailers wouldn't shift the launch date of a game eight days before its release for no reason, and Sega's silence speaks volumes.

If the delay is made official, it would mark the second time that a Sega-published Obsidian game has seen its release plans overturned. The first, a role-playing game based on the Alien film series, was indefinitely delayed in February before being canceled outright in June.

Orange County-based Obsidian, created by Black Isle Studios veterans, is currently at work on Fallout: New Vegas for Bethesda Softworks. The game will use the same 3D engine as Fallout 3, the post-nuclear role-playing sequel to the original, isometric, turn-based Fallout games many Obsidian developers helped create in the late 1990s.

Source: Tech news site Ars Technica's retail mole.

What we heard: Many game-industry rumor-mongers are inconsistent. Not Ars Technica's retail mole. The well-placed source has presaged virtually every console price drop this year, from Sony unveiling the $300 PS3 Slim to Microsoft lopping $100 off the Xbox 360 Elite's former $400 cost.

Today, the mole struck again, telling Ars Technica that Microsoft is planning to introduce a new holiday bundle shortly after its current $50 Xbox 360 Elite rebate ends on October 5. He or she told the site that the new bundle will include two games: Warner Bros. and Traveller's Tales superhero adventure Lego Batman and Pure, a better-reviewed racer from Disney Interactive Studios' Black Rock Studio, formerly Climax Racing.

The official story: "Microsoft does not comment on rumors or speculation." Microsoft rep.

Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus. Besides the reliable track record of Ars' mole, Microsoft has a habit of bundling games with its console each holiday season. Last year, the company added Sega Superstars Tennis to $199 Arcade boxes while packing in Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda in with the Elite and now-discontinued 60GB Pro models.

Source: UK gaming-news site GamesIndustry.biz.

What we heard: GRIN went on a tear in the lead-up to its closure in August, releasing Bionic Commando Rearmed, Wanted: Weapons of Fate, Terminator Salvation, and a Bionic Commando revamp over a period of 12 months. However, the one project that the Swedish studio seemed particularly keen on releasing ultimately never came to fruition. Though details on the project weren't revealed, GRIN characterized it as "our unreleased masterpiece that we weren't allowed to finish."

After the studio's implosion, a handful of unconfirmed reports indicated that the aforementioned "masterpiece" involved Square Enix's acclaimed Final Fantasy franchise. And according to a report today by UK news site GamesIndustry.biz, Square Enix has found a new studio to continue work on the spin-off title.

According to the UK site's sources, GRIN picked up the Final Fantasy game, operating under the code name Fortress, during the back half of 2008. However, Square Enix reportedly took the studio off of the title after six months of development time due to concerns over the game's quality.

GRIN's removal from the project was reportedly the primary reason why the studio collapsed in August. As noted by GI.biz, Swedish companies incur substantial fines if operating under a debt load, and since GRIN reportedly had no other projects in its development pipeline, the studio had no choice but to shut down. Indeed, at the time of its closure, GRIN said that the studio suffered from "an unbearable cash flow situation...as too many publishers have been delaying their payments."

Square Enix has made a significant push to attract Western gaming audiences, namely by purchasing British publisher Eidos, so it seems entirely plausible that the company would hire on GRIN. Square Enix also has precedence in handing over some of its internal franchises to outside developers. As part of the 2009 Electronic Entertainment Expo, the publisher announced that California-based Double Helix had been tapped to create a new installment in the Front Mission series.

The official story: Square Enix had not responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Looking not bogus. Square Enix is unlikely to simply shelve a new installment in its best-selling Final Fantasy franchise, even if GRIN's attempt didn't bear fruit. However, it will likely never be known how closely the game will resemble GRIN's reported effort, assuming it does eventually make it to market.

Source: Halo creator Bungie's official Web site.

What we heard: Though it declared independence from Microsoft in October 2007, Bungie has seemingly continued to operate as an internal studio of the influential publisher. Next week, the publisher will release its latest Xbox 360-exclusive installment in the Halo franchise--Halo 3: ODST--and Halo: Reach is planned for Microsoft's console in 2010. However, beyond Reach, Bungie has said that it "probably" won't be returning to its famed franchise.

In July, the studio said that it was close to landing a publishing deal for a new intellectual property. Last week, a potential indication of which publisher would be picking up the studio's newest game surfaced, when Bungie revealed that Mega Man creator and current Capcom head of researchand development and online business Keiji Inafune stopped by its Kirkland offices.

"Bungie is an amazing studio that has made incredible games," said Inafune as part of an interview the developer posted. "So I was always curious about how they made their games in hopes of being up to add some of the flavor into Capcom games. Also, I wanted to come down to Bungie in order to see just how well our philosophies on game design matched up. If things clicked, I know it would be interesting to collaborate together on a title in the future."

Tossing out further hints of a potential partnership, Inafune stated, "As I mentioned before, a Bungie-Capcom collaboration would certainly create something amazing as well…but I guess we'll have to see if the next twenty years holds something that special or not."

The official story: Neither Bungie nor Capcom had responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Bogus or not bogus?: Though both Inafune and Bungie were ambiguous about the potential of a publishing deal, the implications behind the Capcom executive's visit cannot be ignored.

Source: British trade mag MCV.

What we heard: Last month, federal documents surfaced that revealed Sony had tested a 250GB version of the PlayStation 3 Slim. This month, reports out of Europe have indicated that the supersized console could go on sale as early as October via a variety of game bundles costing £299.99 ($500) or €350 ($510).

Now, yet another report from across the Atlantic is claiming to known exactly why Sony would put out a PS3 with over twice the memory of the 120GB Slim so close to the latter's launch. Citing sources at a "leading entertainment retailer," MCV claims that the 250GB PS3 will be unveiled at the Tokyo Game Show (Sept. 24-27). Furthermore, one configuration of the 250GB console is reportedly already being referred to as a "movie bundle" internally and will come with a Blu-ray movie and Bluetooth remote control.

The magazine then adds some of its own speculation, saying the bundle might "possibly [have] Sony's PlayTV attachment which turns [the] PS3 into a fully-functional Freeview TV recorder." (Emphasis added.) Available only in the EU, the PlayTV peripheral attaches a tuner to the PS3 and installs software that adds TiVo-like digital video recording (DVR) functionality to the console.

The official story: "We've never announced a 250GB PS3, so there is nothing I can say about this rumour." -- Sony Europe rep.

Bogus or not bogus?: While too thin for a firm call, a 250GB PS3 would have the exact same memory capacity HD TiVos currently come with. Another factor to consider is Sony's proclivity for experimenting with multimedia technology like PlayTV in the UK--while leaving other territories high and dry.