No gaming on the Zune any time soon

I recently contacted one of Microsoft’s PR reps (from PR company Edelman) about the Zune to find out if there will be any gaming available on Microsoft’s portable music device. Here was the the response:

“At this time, gaming is not available on Zune. It makes sense that Zune could be a part of a gaming experience, but there has been no determination of how that will be executed or when it will happen.”

This may seem to contradict an earlier indication reported by Total Video Games in an interview with Chris Lewis, Microsoft’s Entertainment Chief in Europe, Middle East, and Africa. he said:

“At the moment, we are focused on creating connected experiences around music for Zune. You can already plug your Zune device into your Xbox 360 to stream music, pictures and video content. Looking ahead, the vision for connected entertainment provides a number of consumer scenarios and with our heritage in Xbox and Games for Windows, gaming is certainly something we’re considering for the device.”

Of course, it’s really not a contradiction but really an indication that either a) games may never be available on the Zune or b) games may someday be available but the PR reps don’t know when or simply cannot tell. It may still be under consideration, as Lewis suggests, but simply not known how or when.

The latest editions of Apple’s iPod ship pre-loaded with games, including solitaire, and more can be purchased. Even the first model of the iPod had a hidden Breakout style game that could be unlocked.

Does the Zune really need to have games? Probably not but it certainly couldn’t hurt sales. They’ve at least tried to appeal to gamers with a Halo 3 edition.

Read [Total Video Games] Via [Gamasutra]