Revealed in a management meeting Thursday in Japan, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata announced that the company has several games in the works, as well as a new product "which will be surprising and unique" to be revealed in the spring. This mention was made in conjunction with discussion of Sony's PSP project, but it's not yet clear if it will be a hardware product, such as a new handheld device. It's suspected that this may be Iwata telegraphing when they will make their announcement of specifications for the successor to Nintendo's GameCube console.

Among the announcements this morning was the revelation that the Donkey Kong franchise for GameCube is being developed in partnership with Namco, the same company Nintendo is working with on the next Star Fox game. Also announced was a GameCube version of "Made in Wario", known as Wario Ware: Mega Microgame$ in the US. The quirky title was an instant hit on GBA, due to its fast and furious gameplay and simple controls.

Finally, Nintendo announced a rewards program, similar to airline frequent flyer miles, called "Club Nintendo". Similar to a system employed by Nintendo in Europe, you earn points buying Nintendo products and are able to trade in these points to earn limited edition Nintendo products, such as unique controllers that will not be sold in stores. Nintendo says that the program will commence by the end of the year in both the United States and Japan.