The Rumour Mine: Special GDC 2010 prediction edition

Next week is Game Developers Conference, which means your buddy the Rumour Miner here has predictions that are going to be put to the test. That's fine because I'm confident that much of what I've been blabbing about is finally going to come true.

So don't be surprised if you see most of my predictions today manifesting themselves as oh-so-sweet announcements next week.

And if I'm wrong… blame it on Apple Editor Tracy Erickson. He's a good punching bag.

Rumour refresh: Tales of Monkey Island, Tekken, Splinter Cell: Conviction

I've mentioned all three of these games before and you're likely to see official unveils for them next week. Both Tales of Monkey Island and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction have already been heavily teased by LucasArts and Gameloft, respectively, so it's just a matter of getting the official word.

At the very least I'm hoping LucasArts announces Tales of Monkey Island so the Pocket Gamer staff will shut up already about how badly they want the game.

Tekken is almost assured, especially given Namco's rival Capcom just announced an iPhone and iPod touch version of its gorgeous Street Fighter IV. C'mon Namco, are you guys going to take that sitting down? Even if it's not Tekken, Soul Calibur will suffice. (But it really is Tekken – trust me on this.)

Unreal Engine 3 licence too rich for iPhone developers' blood

When Epic Games revealed work on an iPhone and iPod touch version of its popular Unreal Engine 3, it widened a lot of eyes. Those slick graphics, however, were being sold at a high price - too high of a price for most developers.

According to several sources, Epic Games was asking way too much for a licence to use the engine. While the company got the enthusiastic reaction it wanted from the industry over its tech demo, it wasn't happy with how developers responded to the price tag. Apparently very few companies expressed interest in buying a licence because Epic Games set the price pretty high.

That could be changing now that enough developers have expressed frustration with the price. Epic Games obvious wants the engine used, so it's renewing its push next week during GDC with a session detailing the engine's capabilities and more reasonable pricing. Mind you, it's still an expensive piece of software, but it's more likely to get developers biting now that it won't cost them an arm and a leg.

Better yet, there's talk of Epic Games showcasing the engine with its own iPhone and iPod touch game. Anyone up for a pared down port of Unreal Tournament III?

id Software to offer gaming relief with Quake III Arena

The few games released by id Software for iPhone and iPod touch have been decent, but not exactly the smash hits that were expected. A port of Quake III Arena could change that perception, although id is going to play it safe with wi-fi only.

It's unsurprising because John Carmack whined about 3G not having the bandwidth to support multiplayer gaming. Eliminate, anyone?

For a company like id Software that doesn't have experience with mobile networks, it isn't a realistic prospect. As sad as that might be, wi-fi ought to be sufficient for competitive online play.

What I want to know is about the controls. Doom Classic wasn't exactly a winner on this front, which makes me hope that criticism of that game will prompt improvements in Quake III Arena. A scheme in the vein of Gameloft's N.O.V.A. would be ideal.

An summer release is planned, so expect to hear more on this soon.