Konami and Kojima Productions’ Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots is easily one of Sony’s most prized upcoming titles. Though fan anticipation can already be considered at a fever pitch, the console maker said when it announced the game’s June 12 launch date in February that the online portion would benefit from an online beta test, beginning in the latter part of April. That April launch date turned out to be earlier this week, but the beta didn’t stay up long, thanks in large part to the massive interest surrounding the game. However, after a week of tinkering, Sony said today on its official blog that the Metal Gear Online development team has patched the beta client and servers are now back up for play. To compensate for the delay, Sony has said the beta period will now extend to May 11. “Initial problems were caused by the extraordinary numbers of customers trying to log in to the site in order to create a Konami ID in order to take part in the beta test,” Konami’s MGO team said in a statement. “In response, we have increased server capacity, as well as created a separate Konami ID registration site specifically for customers wanting to take part in the Metal Gear Online Premiere Beta test.” To help alleviate server strain, Konami also said that it has instituted a play queue and that players may be forced to wait for an open slot in the servers during peak play times.

Nintendo has no doubt realized that demand for its hardware is high and supply is not, as it reportedly doesn’t expect to bring down the cost of admission for either piece of hardware anytime this year. According to Reuters, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata addressed the possibility of price cuts in an analysts’ meeting earlier today. “Our earnings projection for the year is not based on hardware price cuts, and I don’t think we are going to need them,” Iwata was quoted as saying. Despite that confidence, there is reason to think that the laws of supply and demand won’t work as much in Nintendo’s favor this year. In a note to investors this morning, Lazard Capital Markets Colin Sebastian pointed to Nintendo’s plan to increase Wii production and supply by more than 34 percent this year. He also noted the company’s forecast that it expects to ship 28 million DS systems for the new fiscal year, down from 30 million last year, suggesting that it expects slightly tempered demand for the handheld. Sebastian said Nintendo is planning to spark DS sales in the future by pushing further into the mainstream consumer market with new features and games designed for non-traditional gamers. But if that doesn’t work out, Sebastian suggested that the DS would be in for another redesign. “We believe Nintendo could launch a refresh of its handheld platform if sales momentum does not continue,” Sebastian said. This isn’t the first time an analyst has suggested a new version of the DS. Last November, Pacific Crest Securities’ Evan Wilson cited contacts in the industry as telling him the redesign is already complete, and Nintendo was just waiting to unveil it until DS sales tapered off in the US, Europe, and Japan. The DS was launched in November of 2004, and its first redesign, the DS Lite, debuted in Japan in March of 2006.

Yup! Its been that kinda week.