Did I say it was Dolphin week on IGN64? Heh! Anyhoo, they have a depressing (sorry...but aren't you looking forward to this?) story about the Dolphins release. Is this regurgitated too? Hell I don't write it, I just report it. Here ya go....

At last May's E3, Nintendo of America chairman Howard Lincoln announced the worldwide release date for the company's next-generation console, codenamed Dolphin, as late 2000 -- and more specifically, a rumored launch in October of 2000. This announcement was met with much skepticism as it defied previous reports that suggested Nintendo wasn't planning to ship the console until 2001.

The latest news from a Nintendo source who wishes to remain anonymous backs up these stories in full, saying that not only will Dolphin not make its October 2000 release date, but that a delay to the holiday season of 2001 is much more likely.

Evidently the Dolphin hardware simply isn't ready, commented one developer who has been in talks with Nintendo on the subject. And with finalized development kits not scheduled to be made available until January of next year, not only will the hardware probably not be ready, the software to back it up won't either.

Why then would Nintendo set a release date that it knows it can't meet?

"If Sony can say it with a straight face, so can we," was the answer given to more than a few development houses asking the same question. The obvious answer, of course, is to deter potential Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 sales. With initial Dolphin specs and an announced release date made available, jumpy Nintendo loyalists and newcomers to games alike may think twice before buying one of Sony's or Sega's machines. And that's exactly what Nintendo wants.