The rumour wont die simply because Microsoft and the friendly media (or the media that feeds directly from X360 success as Xbox magazines ) simply cant accept it isnt coming .

It doesn't die because there's just too much out there to spell out that MGS4 will come to X360 at some point. Everyone denies it, but the wording in the next paragraph by Konami PR always hints at an X360 version.

Konami has been porting alot to the X360, and with SH5 coming box-side, its even more likely.

1. Not if one console is getting short changed in the deal.

2. Furthermore we're seeing more multi-plat franchises, not multi-plat games. You'll still need all the consoles if you want to enjoy the entirety of most franchises this generation.

The rumor won't die because of the perceived division between Kojima and Konami when it comes to MGS4's exclusivity. Kojima says its exclusive and then have a exec from Konami hinting it will be ported due to the PS3's sales. The situation wasn't helped by Kojima's initial ambiguous quotes regarding the matter.

It is debateable what effect the rumors had. No doubt many were expecting RE4 to move GCNs, but not long after the announcement, Sony fanboys insisted Capcom was lying about it's console exclusivity. They said, because the PS2 would sell so much more than the Cube that Capcom was sure to bring it over. While they were wrong about Capcom lying - the intent was to keep it exclusive - RE4 failed to sell many Cubes, and its overall sales were disappointing, especially given it's GOTY credentials (sales were also disappointing for RE Remake and RE Zero). So, shortly after (before?) it's release, Capcom decided to put RE4 on the PS2 (which Nintendo fanboys and many gaming sites thought impossible).

Now, the question is why didn't RE4 do well on the Cube. It could just be that RE, having watered down its reputation with too many sequels and side projects on too many consoles, simply didn't have the Killer App pull people expected. Could be that Nintendo gamers didn't have as much interest as the die hards hoped (witness the crash and burn of Eternal Darkness). But some people believe that RE4 disappointed on the Cube because everyone believed it was going to the PS2 (which, for some reason, many believed more powerful than the Cube, which shows you how little they really knew) and so chose to simply wait rather than grab a second console. This, I imagine, is why so many PS3 fans are reluctant to acknowlege the timed exclusivity of UT3 and Haze, and will not acknowlege even a small potential of truth to any rumor of FF13 or MGS4 hopping to the 360.

I think it's getting annoying. There is never any real big source for this, but it's usually 'some inside source' that can totally confirm all of these rumors despite the big people, saying it's staying on the PS3. The biggest support for the rumor was the Konami guy saying that if it does bad on the PS3, they could possibly think about putting it on 'another system'. I've even heard that big wigs have put pressure on Kojima a couple of times to move it from PS3 exclusive and he outright refused.
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About RE4, didn't capcom announce that it was going to the PS2 before or right around the time the cube version came out?

1) The lack of a reliable source it what makes it a rumor. Pretty much everything you say after that is good reason for the rumor to persist.

2) Yes, and leading up to that you had the same sorts of rumors. We are still more than 6 months from MGS4's release, and these rumors can likely persist for at least 6 months after that.

 You are leaving out a part.  RE4 PS2 was announced BEFORE The GC version was released.  Right before, in fact.  In Nov. 2004, when the Game was released in January.

Do we have any proof RE4 was announced for the PS2 before the GC launch? I for one don't see a link.

We all know there is going to be a 360 verion of MGS4, the fact people fight the rumor is just baffling as there is really no tangible reason to think it can't or wouldn't.

- If SH5 is being ported to 360, why not MGS4?
- Konami President said they need to make up the funds it cost to produce MGS4 and a PS3 version alone won't cut it.
- Kojima says it can't happen, but Kojima is also not a credible source. For example, ever since the first MGS he has claimed that MGS2, MGS3 and MGS4 would all be the last games in the series, would all be the last games he himself directed and would all have permenant Sony exclusivity. He was of course, entirely wrong, on all of these accounts.
- MGS podcasts reveal insiders coping to Kojima admitting behind the scenes it could easily go on the 360, he just wanted PS3 exclusivity to ensure more control over MGS5. In the end we have to accept he has no claim to the intelectual properties of MGS and ultimately no say in where it goes, and nine times out of ten is just lying to our face. I love the man and his work, but I'll be damned if I ever quote him before the fact.

All we have left now is to wait for the formality of them "officially" announcing a 360 version whenever they decide it is right.

They said that UT 3 and Haze came only played on a PS3 this year. (consoles of course.)