I agree with several of you and the main author that Microsoft doesn't need to make a separate gaming handheld because the SmartPhone and PocketPC are gravitating in that direction. It's too bad the Tapwave people chose the wrong OS for their device, but I'm sure some ambitious company will take Windows CE and use it on a PDA with a focus on gaming. The Gizmondo is looking to be the first real gaming device based on WinCE (
www.gizmondo.com). It looks like it won't have many PDA features, but it certainly was designed for gaming.
I have been trying to sell companies on the idea of game emulators for Windows CE for a while. The biggest challenge is not the coding, nor the licensing, but the lack of a market. The PPC market is just sooo small that game companies are reluctant to bother with it. Finally with the release of the MPx200, the SmartPhone platform looks like it has a chance to make a foothold. This shows lots of promise for gaming. I disagree with
MichaelA about using the phone for gaming. I've recently written a GameBoy and GameGear emulator for the SmartPhone and I think it's great. My phone goes everywhere with me and I enjoy playing a quick game of Pac Attack or Soukoban when I'm on the road. The GameBoy and GameGear games were written for a small screen and lack of buttons and play extremely well. I am working hard to get licensed emulation titles to the SmartPhone and PPC. If all goes well you will be able to play them soon. I'll be at E3 next week demoing my emulators and trying to convince several companies of this idea.
Larry B.