The most common complaint leveled against Microsoft's Xbox is the apparent lack of third-party support for the system. Yesterday at the Tokyo Game Show, however, Sega made an announcement which should increase gamers' faith in the system. Sega announced an eleven-title publishing agreement with Microsoft for the Xbox. The games mentioned specifically by Sega are Gun Valkyrie and new games in Sega's popular Jet Grind Radio, Panzer Dragoon, and Sega GT series. Though no RPGs were among the specifically mentioned titles, seven titles are still unannounced, and with Sega's recent commitment to the genre, an Xbox RPG from Sega would not be a surprise.

As well as the game announcements, Sega has also expressed great interest in Xbox's broadband gaming capabilities. As one of the primary developers of online games for Sega's own Dreamcast system, Sega certainly has the ability to show what Xbox's broadband connections are truly capable of. As third-party games will make or break Microsoft's chances for success, Sega's recent announcement looks to give gamers a much more promising look at Microsoft's much-maligned system.