Normally, a major event such as E3 would have all the big name companies attending it.  This year will be different, though, as five publishers have decided to drop out of the event altogether. Part of the reason may be due to reported bad blood between them and ESA president Mike Gallagher. More on this after the jump.

In a recent post on the PlayNC.com Dev Corner, Tabula Rasa creator Richard Garriott let out some tidbits of info about NCSoft's new relationship with Sony.

According to Garriott, the NCSoft-Sony deal will allow the former to develop titles across all of the latter's hardware platforms. The focus will be on the PlayStation 3 home video game console, but the PlayStation Portable handheld gaming system will also be getting its share of loving.

While no titles were revealed in the post, Garriott did mention that NCSoft's first PlayStation console titles will hopefully be out by next year's holiday season. NCSoft will also reportedly be concentrating on putting out titles based on a mix of old and new IPs.

Developing games based on new IPs will take longer, however. Garriott estimates that development for these particular titles will probably take a minimum of two to three years.

It also looks like NCSoft will be sticking to its tried and tested business models for its Sony products. According to Garriott, gamers can expect the usual traditional subscription models, micropayment systems and free-to-play games with membership options. Keep checking back here for more details.

JoyStiq managed to score an interview with NCsoft boss Richard Garriot and Executive Producer Brian Clayton. The talk revolved mostly around the MMORPG industry and their (NCSoft) plans to support the PlayStation 3 with MMO-type titles. Their latest project - Tabula Rasa - was also touched; and surprisingly, they also signified plans to dabble on developing for the PlayStation Portable in the future.

According to Clayton, they're looking at a number of ways on how to beef up the PSP games frontline. A fully immersive and working MMO for the said handheld isn't that farfetched, with Clayton saying that they "see a number of opportunities with the PSP as a standalone MMO or as an extension to our full-blown MMOs on PC and PS3". Hmm... MMO game on PSP, sounds good 'ey? Their plans are best summed in this quote:

I would argue that developing a handheld MMO could be the largest challenge in game development. For example, the game needs to be developed from the onset to address limited communication tools, screen real estate and controls, which are all intrinsic to providing a quality MMO experience. We have a number ideas and solutions to address the above-mentioned concerns, but can't go into those details right now.

The full article awaits after the jump!

The cat is out of the bag as NCsoft has given word on its plans for both the PSP and PS3. The fact that NCsoft would be producing games for Sony's PlayStation platforms was first announced during E3 but very little details were revealed then.

NCSoft's executive producer Richard Garriott gave out a few details to CVG in the Develop Conference in Brighton. He maintained that each title they plan on releasing will be "very carefully created for the console experience, not merely a straight port," adding that "unadulterated ports weren't very successful compared to games that you make sure are really crafted correctly for the console experience."

Ever since online play was introduced on consoles, financially viable MMORPGs have yet to grace the systems. Garriott explained the business models and technology have previously prevented most console companies and online game companies. However, he pointed out that gamers don't care about that. They want to just boot up the game and play. So it's up to the developers and console manufacturers to handle that problem.

Online gaming seems like a very viable market that game consoles can get into, so game makers and hardware firms are going all out to capitalize on the situation. In this year's E3, Sony Computer Entertainment and NCsoft have announced that they're forging ties to bring exclusive content for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable.

The deal they entered provides that NCsoft shall develop several titles which may be original or drawn from the developer's existing work which has a roster that includes hits like Lineage, Guild Wars and City of Heroes.

"Their track record of creating successful online games is exactly what we are looking for as we grow the PlayStation Network, delivering new, rich experiences on both PS3 and PSP," says Sony's Third Party and Developer Support Vice President Riley Russell.

According to NCsoft, their games are at a global standard and have been deployed everywhere from the US to Asia. They also claim to have a 70 million-strong user base when you total everything in each of their regional markets.

No specific titles have been disclosed for either the PS3 or the PSP, but both firms say that planning is already underway and a revelation on what projects they'll be working on will come soon.

NCSoft, the developer behind highly successful online games like Guild Wars, City of Heroes, and Lineage has just recently signed an exclusive Game Development deal with Sony Computer Entertainment in the effort to grow Sony's PlayStation Network.

The agreement, announced during the E3 Media and Business Summit, will see NCsoft creating several online games primarily for the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Portable.

Geoff Heath, CEO of NCSoft Europe stated that this deal is "a great step forward for online gaming". He also added that PS3 has demonstrated its versatility for online games. Along with the Internet-enabled PSP, NCsoft has the potential to build Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games for both platforms. Heath stated, "...we're confident that SCEI and NCsoft can develop unique and compelling online experiences that will be found on no other platform."

With a good track record of producing successful online games, NCsoft may just the partner Sony needs to expand the PlayStation Network. While no details have been given as to the names or types of games to be developed, officials from NCsoft hinted at the possibility that the games would be created from both existing Intellectual Properties owned by the company as well as original content in the future. Hopefully, we wont be kept waiting for long.

Yes, I know that you hardcore console folks (I'm looking at you, PSPeeps!) hate seeing this sort of stuff on your blogs, but I'm giving you warning - there's a shameless plug ahead! But we gotta get the word out on two of our newest blogs - and not just any blogs, our first game specific blogs! We all know that MMORPG's are big, and it's the nature of an online beast to have lots of news, updates, patches, mods and upgrades to talk about. These new blogs have been lurking around the QJ network all this week, but it's time to give them the proper introduction they deserve.

Okay, so that one doesn't need much of an introduction. Everyone's heard of a little game called World of Warcraft, right? Yeah, I thought so. It is the MMORPG of our times with millions upon millions of players wandering through the world of Azeroth every single minute of every single day. And that's just the beginning. With the upcoming release of the Burning Crusade expansion, things are about to get even bigger. So it's a perfect time to launch our own WoW blog to keep everyone on top of every single bit of info out there! There's no stopping World of Warcraft from dominating the globe...

...or is there? You see, there's this little gem of a game that's been in the works for over 4 years from the fine folks at NCSoft and Destination Games. At the helm is Ultima Online">Richard Garriott aka Lord British, the mastermind behind the grand-daddy of modern MMORPG's - Ultima Online. With experience and an award winning art team on their side, Tabula Rasa hopes to wipe the slate clean and knock WoW off its high horse. With a unique crossbreeding of 3rd person RPG action with alien-blasting FPS controls and tactics, it might do just that.

TR will soon be hitting the beta stage, and we here at QJ want to be in on the ground floor of what will most likely be the next big thing in the MMORPG universe. This is the place to be if you want to keep up on all the latest news, art renders, screenshots, and developments.

So there you have it - two new blogs to check out, with some pretty snazzy sneak peaks and exclusive content on the way. And a third new blog isn't far behind, and hopefully it will fill the obvious hole in the QJ Network when it comes to gaming news!

CEA to the rescue?

Yeah, we here at QJ are still pretty bummed with the news about the changes in E3, but it looks like the Consumer Electronics Association is planning to be our shoulder to cry on as they are seriously considering the viability of a new consumer and trade event for the games industry.

After that ESA decision to morph E3 to into the E3 Media Festival, CEA believes there's a gap in the industry calendar which they are planning to fill with a freshly designed event based on feedback from the electronic entertainment industry.

CEA president and CEO, Gary Shapiro said that "since ESA decided to eliminate the E3 event in its known format, we have been deluged with inquiries on whether we could fill the tradeshow needs of smaller video entertainment companies. Our executive board met yesterday and unanimously asked staff to explore ways that we can help the gaming community."

The possibility of an E3-like extravaganza from CEA will be decided by the advisory committee led by CEA executives Karen Chupka and Dan Cole with support from companies including Auravision, Majesco Entertainment and NCsoft. For now, things are looking optimistic, according to Ms. Chupka, "a major goal of this advisory committee is to generate gaming community feedback on how best to meet the needs of the industry...As long as there is desire and commitment, we are ready to service this community and will begin looking at venues in Las Vegas and Los Angeles and for appropriate partners."

So what's your take in all these? Do you think the planned CEA event could fill the large gap left behind by E3? What do you want to see in the CEA event? Tell it to us through your comments.