In the entertainment industry, previews are a common thing. Whether it's a new movie or the pilot episode of a potential television show, selected audiences get to offer their input on it. Now, consumers also will have a chance to preview and critique future mobile games.

Recently, Sony Ericsson announced the Consumer Game Challenge 2004. On a campaign web site, it published games from the Sony Ericsson Game Developers Challenge 2004. Using the Sony Ericsson Z1010, K700, and Z500, the Game Developers Challenge asked developers to create the best Java games in five genres. The categories included Action/Adventure, Sports, Role-Playing Games (RPGs), and Platform and Puzzle games.

Through promotions in various countries, consumers are being invited to try out those games by playing them through a web emulator. They then vote on different features. The results will determine which 20 games will go to the finals. At that point, the games will be evaluated by a jury of individuals from Sony Ericsson and the wireless gaming industry.

The company's aim is to select one winner from each of the major regions of the world. The winners are slated to be announced on September 3, 2004. The three winners will each get a $7000 cash prize; Java verification paid for by Sony Ericsson through the JavaVerified program; and prominent placement on Sony Ericsson Fun & Downloads (www.sonyericsson.com/fun). They also will be the first partners to be considered for pre-loaded content or top download links on the coming MIDP 2.0 phones from Sony Ericsson.

All of the games that were submitted will be commercially distributed through the Sony Ericsson Application Shop (www.sonyericsson.com/applicationshop). As a result, the winning developers can start making money on their games right away. To view the game challenge campaign site, go to www.sonyericsson.com/gamechallenge/.