The recent debacle between Infinity Ward and Activision makes for a good news read, but there's a lingering question that nobody is asking: Is Call of Duty Dead?

Of course, Treyarch will still be there to give us its games, but let's face it...Infinity Ward is the God of COD. So what will happen to the franchise now? We attempted to contact representatives of both IW and Activision, but have not yet received an answer.

What do you think? Will Activision drop Infinity Ward?

Evidence says, "Yes." After announcing Sledgehammer Games, Activision seems to be attempting to fill Infinity Ward's spot. After all, IW is plenty capable of delivering big selling COD titles every two years. However, there's also talk that Sledgehammer Games is simply working on bringing COD into a new genre...so it could be that they're just trying to open new doors and not do a full replacement. There's a good chance that IW is still under contract for the 2011 COD.

Either way, we won't know for sure until Activision or IW responds. So, stay tuned!

According to Amazon.com on March 1, 2010 @ 9:30a.m. CST, Final Fantasy on PS3 is ranked #1 in Video Games. The Xbox 360 version is ranked #16. How (or if) this will translate to total sales is purely conjecture, but Amazon is currently reporting that the PS3 is presenting more interest as of right now.

We'll be keeping an eye on this as release draws nearer.

It's that time, again. Last year, we broke news in March of Team ICO showing off Project Trico at E3. While nothing is confirmed, here's what to expect from this year's E3.

SONY:
Sony will expect to see a lot of Natal from Microsoft, and they don't seem to have much faith in Natal, if at all. So, Sony will really be catering to the hardcore crowd this year. They'll have a good focus on Arc, but it certainly isn't meant to be the focus of the event as a whole. Put Sony down for some more "real" game demonstrations, but most of what we'll see will most likely be shovelware. We're likely to see Arc at work with Little Big Planet, but if ModNation Racers has another demonstration, expect Arc to play a role, as we've already seen a lot from this game.

We can expect to see some tantalizing teasers from Agent, inFamous 2, and Project Trico. As is Rockstar's way, don't expect any actual gameplay to be revealed on Agent. They'll be sticking with cinematics...(but that's fine with me). inFamous 2 will reveal the story that's in line for us with the sequel, and Project Trico will most likely unveil another artsy piece...though expect Team ICO to give up a few more details.

We're sure to see some gameplay from trailers featuring Resistance 3 and Final Fantasy XIV. Most likely, we'll even get a live demonstration of each. Expect a release date for Resistance 3 and a beta announcement for FFXIV.

Final, we'll get a glimpse of Killzone 3. They may assign a release for "Winter 2010", or something, but don't expect to see it until early-to-mid 2011. Most likely, Killzone 3 will be released in order to gear people back up for the PS3 in the slower start of the year. There are some great games in production, but most won't see store shelves until late 2011, so Sony will need to fill out the beginnings of next year.

We might also want to cross our fingers on some news from Bioware. Announcement of an MMO or FPS may be forthcoming, but I would really doubt anything FPS related, as Sony really has a satisfying FPS lineup already. If there's no Bioware, maybe we'll see something from Naughty Dog or Media Molecule, instead.

MICROSOFT:
Microsoft is going to really try to turn naysayers into gospel preachers when it comes to Natal. There's a lot of guff in the 360 community right now, so we can expect Microsoft to try and put fears to rest. Will they deliver? Most likely not. If they're smart, they'll take Sony's route and really focus on the hardcore gamer at E3 and let television marketing hype the casual crowd. (How many grandmas watch E3?)

Unlike 2009, Microsoft has a massive load of great things to bring to E3 2010. Expect to see new details on Fable 3, Gears 3 and Halo Reach. These 3 titles are enough to carry Microsoft's entire conference.

Don't expect a lot of innovation, though. Microsoft is sticking to what works, and they're sure to bring Bungie along to announce something new. Will it be a new franchise, or just another genre of the Halo universe? My money is on a bridge from Halo to something new. They've got a cool new engine from Halo Reach, and they aren't planning on trashing it just yet.

Other than exclusives, expect Microsoft to show off some more multiplatform titles. They like to do this, and they'll do it again. Microsoft really tries to sell itself as the best platform for multiplatform games, so we can reasonably expect to see them showcase some titles from Activision and EA.

OVERALL:
Who will win E3? I don't really believe in winners. I do think we'll see less innovation than usual from Sony, though. Sure, they'll have some awesome titles, but nothing that really shocks us. With God of War 3 around the corner, we've really seen the PS3 push boundaries. Expect a little downtime from Sony.

Microsoft, on the other hand, will really give us the impression that they've been working hard to keep everyone's attention. They'll be successful, for the most part. But as far as innovation goes, I predict that the Natal will disappoint. What we've seen, and what we've heard, just doesn't support Natal as a concept for E3-watching gamers. Fortunately, Microsoft won't let followers down, as they will have a load of fantastic titles to steal the show from Natal.

You won't leave E3 (or its coverage) empty handed. Gamers will be fully satisfied this year, so get ready! It's going to be a pretty sweet ride.

UPDATE: Just got some more news. Look forward to an exclusive confirmation in late March.

In case you're still wondering if Left 4 Dead 2 will see the light of PS3, Jimmy Fallon just entered another solid confirmation into the mix. But you should know that he was holding a 360 controller during the ad.

Anyhow, it looks like we'll have some more console comparisons to fight about!

UPDATE: http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/video/episodes/?vid=1171255 Fast forward to the first commercial break (14:20).

Many of you probably remember that I broke a story in March confirming that Team ICO's next project would be introduced at E3. With the latest leak of "Project Trico", I have had several gamers asking me if we would still see ICO at E3, or if the announcement would be pulled. I just wanted to let everyone know that the E3 trailer is still on schedule, and it is NOT the leaked trailer. So, you can expect to see more in a couple weeks!