In a move that is sure to raise the eyebrows of some diehard game players, Microsoft has joined forces with Sega Enterprises to make the underlying software on the game company's next video console. The action indirectly pits the world's largest maker of personal computer software against the leading makers of video-game consoles, Sony and Nintendo. And Microsoft lands squarely in a business that until now has stayed free of the Redmond, Washington company's far-reaching influence. On one hand, Microsoft already is one of the largest makers of software games, such as Flight Simulator, that run on its Windows operating system. Microsoft even makes joysticks to hook up to PCs.

But Microsoft and Sega have their work cut out for them expanding that legacy to games viewed on TV sets, at least judging by the buzz ahead of the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the giant video-game industry gathering that begins in Atlanta on Thursday.