Rumor Round-Up: CoD to be MMOG, PSP 4.0 Firmware, Sony Blu-R

It’s that time of week! Here’s a collection of all the hottest industry rumors we like to call the Rumor Round-Up.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick stirred the waters early this week when he mentioned in a press conference that the Call of Duty franchise might extend its dominance into the realm of massively multiplayer online games. Kotick feels that the impending merger with Blizzard Entertainment will supply the necessary knowhow to make the idea of a CoD MMOG a reality.

According to various credible European gaming sources, Microsoft seems to be feeling the heat outside of the good old US of A and should announce a €50 price drop to all European Xbox 360 consoles. The rumored date is March 14th. Such a massive price cut should make the 360 the best console bargain in Europe and set it up for a big spring push ahead of the releases of GTA IV, Fable 2, and Gears of War 2.

Rumors have also been swirling around the PSP’s 4.0 Firmware update. Word around the gaming campfire is that 4.0 will release on March 18th and include a wide variety of application support. Some of the features include the ability to remote play PS3 titles via the PSP. There will be support for Real, Quicktime, and Windows Media audio and video codecs (WMV, WMA). Adobe Flash Player 9 supported by using Memory Stick Pro Duo as the flash memory. Support for Shockwave Player. Also the 802.11b Wi-Fi of the PSP will be upgraded to 802.11g. The list of rumored 4.0 specs is actually a bit too lengthy to list, prompting me to discount the credibility of the rumor. Nonetheless, it’s a rumor you need to know about. We’ll see what the 4.0 Firmware will actually entail.

According to famed gaming blogger Surfer Girl, the Wii will most likely get a Pikmin title this year. According to the blog posting, the official announcement should come at E3 with a release sometime before the holiday season. The fact that Captain Olimar and his Pikmin minions are featured in Super Smash Bros. Brawl makes this rumor seem almost obvious. However, does that mean we’re going to see a current-generation remake of Kid Icarus?

Finally, the rumors surrounding a Microsoft Blu-Ray device just won’t die, and for good reason. According to the London Financial Times, “Sony Electronics (US) CEO, Stan Glasgow, confirmed that Microsoft and Sony are in talks over a Blu-ray drive for Xbox 360.” However, on Thursday Microsoft reiterated their claim that there are other forms of media and entertainment to be had on the Xbox 360, and that is where Microsoft will focus their efforts. I guess many will still have to wait for an “I told you so”, but a Microsoft-backed Blu-Ray device for the 360 looks more and more likely.