June 2003

Monday, June 30, 2003

One Must Fall: Battlegrounds box art revealed
Posted by White_Pointer @ 22:22:27 AEST
The box art for One Must Fall: Battlegrounds has been finalised and has been revealed to the public. See it for yourself:

More SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos characters revealed
Posted by White_Pointer @ 11:15:07 AEST
To add to the official list of characters that Playmore has announced, sources from the game's location testing are indicating that SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos will feature even more characters than we have been told about.

The official announced roster thus far is as follows:

SNK

Kyo Kusanagi
Iori Yagami
Mai Shiranui
Earthquake
Terry Bogard
Ryo Sakazaki
Shiki
Choi Bounge
Mr. Karate
Kasumi Todoh
Kim
Genjyuro Kibagami

Capcom

Ryu
Ken
Chun-Li
Hugo
Guile
Tabasa
Gouki
Dhalsim
Balrog (Vega in the US)
M. Bison (Balrog in the US)
Sagat
Vega (M. Bison in the US)

In addition to this, the characters that have been revealed during location testing are:

Dan
Demitri
Goenitz
Evil Ken
Shin Gouki
Orochi Iori
Evil Mr. Karate

The game is currently scheduled for a 3rd quarter release this year. We'll have more information as it becomes available.
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New Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Gamecube screens
Posted by White_Pointer @ 10:56:36 AEST
Atari has released some new screenshots of the upcoming Gamecube version of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai. You can view them at your leisure right here.

At this early stage it's clear that the graphics engine still needs a bit of refining, but it's certainly looking promising. The gameplay system is said to be by and large a direct port of the PS2 version. The game is currently scheduled for an October release.
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Sunday, June 29, 2003

New featured game!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 13:19:19 AEST
One of the features we are proud of on this site is the fact that we strive to cover as many fighting games as we can to appeal to the biggest audience possible. So, yet again, we have expanded our game coverage to bring you another featured game! Added to our lineup of games is the XBox party brawler Kung Fu Chaos. We open the section with an excellent FAQ, 60 screenshots spanning across 2 image galleries and 4 gameplay movies. So...check it all out!
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One Must Fall: Battlegrounds test
Posted by White_Pointer @ 0:06:25 AEST
In addition to offering freebies with your preorder of One Must Fall: Battlegrounds, Diversions Entertainment have also announced that they will be beginning a test run of the game during the month of July. The test will be given to 10,000 members of the OMF: Battlegrounds forums. So if you are looking forward to this game and you aren't already part of the OMF community...right now might be a good time to visit the Official OMF site and join their forums.
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Saturday, June 28, 2003

New PS2 Budget range in Europe
Posted by White_Pointer @ 14:14:25 AEST
Publisher Play It has today announced the launch of a new range of budget-priced PlayStation 2 games in Europe. Four games priced at £9.99 ($16.49) are already available in the new Play It range in the UK, and at least another 15 are currently scheduled for release before the end of the year.

Play It games already on sale in the UK include Road Trip Adventure, Play It Pinball, Cel Damage Overdrive, and Seek and Destroy. Further games scheduled for release on the Play It label include the following:

Motorsiege: Warriors of Prime Time - July
Play It Chess - July
World International Pool Championship - July
High Speed Extreme Street Racer - July
Play It Casino - July
1945 & 1949 Arcade - August
Blocks - August
International Karate - August
Constructor - September
Play It Golf - September
Putty Squad - September
Dinosaur Hunter - October
Mob Rule - November

"The Play It range is a radical concept for modern console owners," said Mark Cale, president, Play It. "Whilst lower-priced or republished titles have been around on the PlayStation 2 for some time, no range has been able to offer original, never-seen-before titles for such an ambitious price. Indeed, most budget labels are offering regurgitated games at, on average, twice the price of the Play It games. We're confident our titles will prove to be a hit with games players.

The Play It range comprises completely original titles, plus PlayStation 2 versions of some of gaming's fondly remembered titles. We're aiming to appeal to all PlayStation 2 owners, not just families or hard-core gamers."

Thursday, June 26, 2003

One Must Fall merchandise giveaway for preorders
Posted by White_Pointer @ 18:57:24 AEST
Just received word from the One Must Fall: Battlegrounds development team of a One Must Fall merchandise giveaway. Any North American resident that preorders the upcoming game at EBgames or Gamestop will also receive a free t-shirt and a poster signed by the development team! All you need to do is send the OMF crew a copy of your preorder and your free stuff will be in the mail almost immediately. How cool is that? Not only will you get an excellent game, but you'll receive a nifty t-shirt and signed poster as well. Not bad eh? So what are you waiting for? If you live in NA, get down to your local EBgames or Gamestop now and pre-order your copy!

For more information just check out the official OMF message boards here.
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Dragon Ball Z: Budokai coming to Gamecube in October
Posted by White_Pointer @ 9:46:52 AEST
Atari have just announced their release date for the Gamecube version of Dragon Ball Z: Budokai. The game is slated for release in October, following the massive response to the PS2 original that was released in December last year. The PS2 version sold more than 3.5 million units, and the Gamecube version is already very highly anticipated by Nintendo players worldwide.

"We are thrilled to bring Dragon Ball Z: Budokai to the Nintendo GameCube. It features a heart-pounding interactive story that runs parallel to some of the most exciting sagas from the animated television series," said Matt Broughton, International Communications Director at ATARI. "Nintendo GameCube owners will now be able to enjoy all the Dragon Ball Z excitement that made Budokai on PS2 such a hit."

Wednesday, June 25, 2003

New Soul Calibur II characters!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 21:29:54 AEST
We all know that Soul Calibur II has been available in Japan for some time now, with the US and PAL territories being forced to wait for their August and September releases of the game respectively. But, it turns out there is damn good reason to keep us waiting. Namco are further tweaking the game even more to push the limits of their respective consoles even further by adding in more playable characters!
We now know that Rock and Hwang from the original game will be unlockable characters in the US version of SCII! Those who were fans of the original will no doubt be ecstatic at this news. It's also been confirmed that Lizardman is also making a return, but so far he's only in there as an opponent in Quest mode and is not actually playable...yet.

New History of Fighters addition
Posted by White_Pointer @ 14:59:16 AEST
Pube's taken us on a trip down memory lane again with another history of fighters article. This time he revisits the classic Rocky game, released on the Sega Master System in 1987. Give it a read here!
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New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles screenshots!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 9:35:14 AEST
Konami have released some brand new, high-quality screens of their upcoming new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game! You can check them out in our TMNT Image Gallery here! These screens are for the console versions (and possibly the PC although we don't have enough info about that version yet)
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Monday, June 23, 2003

Gamecube Gameboy Player Unleashed
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:34:42 AEST
The moment all Nintendo fans have been waiting for has arrived! The Gamecube Gameboy Player has been shipped to the US today and will be available to buy off retail shelves. This, for those of you who are unaware, allows you to play any Gameboy, Gameboy Colour and Gameboy Advance game on the Gamecube in full screen. This means that the Gamecube library has increased by about 750%!!!

"For several years, the video game industry has been pushing forward to new technical frontiers, while at the same time celebrating classic hit games of the past," says Peter MacDougall, executive vice president, sales and marketing, Nintendo of America Inc. "The Game Boy Player fulfills both desires by instantly making your favorite Game Boy games playable on your television screen."

Sunday, June 22, 2003

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles coming to GBA and PC!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 22:58:30 AEST
More good news for Ninja Turtles fans! As we know our favourite green heroes are on their way to the major consoles and are looking great so far, but, Konami have also confirmed that the game is slated for a PC and GBA release as well! Whether it's the same game as the console versions remains to be seen, but, it's certainly good to know! At a glance, the GBA version isn't quasi-3D like the old SNES and Arcade TMNT games were, but is rather fixed to a 2D plane. It's still early days, however, and the GBA team may very well polish up the engine a little. Needless to say though, it doesn't use the cell-shaded engine that's being used for the console versions. No info is available for the PC version at the moment.

To whet your appetite, we have some of the first screenshots released for the GBA version right here for your viewing pleasure...so don't just sit there, click this link and check them out!
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Blow the dust off your boxing gloves....
Posted by Pube @ 19:47:35 AEST
... because I have added into our History of Fighters section the ultimate boxing simulation series "Punch Out!!". Theres also quite a few pictures in there so check it out here.

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Saturday, June 21, 2003

XBox 2 coming in 2006?
Posted by White_Pointer @ 12:01:36 AEST
Sources are indicating that Microsoft are planning on releasing the successor to the XBox not late 2004/early 2005 as some have been predicting, but as late as 2006...at least in Japan. Other launch dates haven't been announced but Microsoft have stated in the past that they would like a simultaneous launch of it's new console around the world when the time comes.

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has also apparently told the Japanese press that Microsoft is looking to introduce new services specifically designed to appeal to Japanese consumers with it's new gaming system, as it's looking to improve on the XBox's less than impressive Japanese sales with the console's successor.
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Altered Beast remake coming to PS2
Posted by White_Pointer @ 10:55:47 AEST
Everyone who remembers the 8-bit and 16-bit glory days of gaming would no doubt remember Altered Beast, the side-scrolling beat-em-up that involved your character changing into a variety of beasts to battle through the bad guys.
Well, old school gamers would be pleased to know that Sega, alongside Wow Entertainment, are hard at work on a PS2 exclusive remake! What's more, from what we've seen so far the game looks fantastic! Even in these early stages, what's been revealed about the game is looking very, very promising.

We've got some of the first gameplay screens released for the new game...so take a look at them right here!
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Friday, June 20, 2003

Nintendo wins massive Lawsuit
Posted by White_Pointer @ 13:56:04 AEST
Nintendo's stance on pirating has entered a whole new chapter as they have won one of their biggest illegal software lawsuits to date. They charged Lik-Sang with selling devices that are manufactured for the sole purpose of copying Gameboy Advance games. The judge ordered that Lik-Sang pay Nintendo US$641,000, plus pay for Nintendo's legal expenses. That's only an interim payment however, the final damages amount will be decided in a later hearing.

Hong Kong copyright law is directed not at the person who made unlawful copy but the person/s who furnished the means to make the illegal copying occur. By analogy,

"With drugs, it is not aimed at the drug addict but at the drug trafficker," noted Judge Waung in the judgment. "I have no doubt that the reason they sell like hotcakes is because they delivered the means whereby a person would be able to steal the games of the plaintiffs (Nintendo) housed inside the Game Boy cartridge of the plaintiffs and then illegally put the stolen games into the defendants' Flash Card."

"These devices have been distributed to at least 30 countries around the world. Nintendo will take all steps necessary to stop the manufacturing and distribution of counterfeit Nintendo products," says Jodi Daugherty, director of anti-piracy for Nintendo of America Inc. "Nintendo has the best game developers in the world. They have spent years developing unique and creative games. Their respective efforts deserve to be protected and respected, not stolen."

Karateka Added to The History of Fighters
Posted by Pube @ 8:38:52 AEST
Many of you may have fond memories of playing this classic. Check it out, in all its 1986 glory, here.

Enjoy.
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Wednesday, June 18, 2003

Treamcast Photo Gallery
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:34:00 AEST
Just a quick update on the Treamcast news story, we've now got a gallery of Treamcast pictures, so if you are interested and you want to see it for yourself from a variety of angles, Take a look!
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A portable Dreamcast?
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:23:00 AEST
Who remembers the Dreamcast? It was Sega's last console before they dropped out of the hardware business to concentrate on software, and we saw fighters like Power Stone, Mortal Kombat Gold and Soul Calibur released on the system. According to Lik-Sang, an Online Electronics Retailer, a Hong-Kong based company has created a portable Dreamcast that they have called the Treamcast. Apparently the system contains pretty much all the original hardware that was in the Dreamcast, with the addition of a speaker with a volume control and an LCD screen. The unit comes complete with two controllers, a remote control for MP3/video CD playback, a car adapter kit and a carry case.
Unfortunately, the Treamcast is not officially endorsed or developed by Sega and it will probably not see the light of day outside of Hong Kong, but still, it's an interesting thought. The unit is apparently selling for about $170 US dollars.

New History of Fighters Addition
Posted by Pube @ 10:28:53 AEST
Yep, I've added in another historic game. This time Sega's Black Belt is added to the hall of fame way back from '86. Enjoy it here
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Tuesday, June 17, 2003

New Street Fighter Alpha 3 GBA screenshots
Posted by White_Pointer @ 20:52:52 AEST
It's taken us a little while but we've finally got some screenshots of the GBA version of Street Fighter Alpha 3. You can view them in our Capcom/Street Fighter Image Galleries or by clicking here!
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Monday, June 16, 2003

Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 2 announced
Posted by White_Pointer @ 15:47:01 AEST
Yep, a sequel to Dragon Ball Z: Budokai is already in the works. Details on the new game are sketchy at best, but what we do know is that it'll follow a similar gameplay formula to the original and will retain the cell shaded look of the original as well, with some obvious minor graphical changes such as more detailed characters and backgrounds. The developer is working on making the flying mechanic in the game much more dynamic, and that the gameplay will now include power struggles, where both characters throw ridiculously huge beams of energy at each other, each trying to beat back the other energy beam. The new game will feature the full cast of the original, plus new characters have have appeared in the cartoon series since the original's initial release; Videl, Dobura, and three forms of Buu--Maijin Buu, Super Buu, and Kid Buu.

No release date has been set just yet.
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Sunday, June 15, 2003

Bloody Roar 4 information and screenshots!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 10:11:55 AEST
We've got some new info and screenshots of the newest addition to the Bloody Roar series, the Playstation 2 exclusive Bloody Roar 4! The new game will feature 17 fighters, 3 of which are new, 9 battlegrounds and 9 different gameplay modes, although Konami haven't revealed what these are just yet. An interesting new addition that has been promised is the option to customise your fighters by earning "ability points" as you fight in the game's development mode. These points can be spent in increasing your character's stats and even aquiring your opponent's moves.

The game is currently scheduled for a November 2003 release...in the meantime, check out our screenshots!
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Saturday, June 14, 2003

Street Fighter gallery opens in Japan
Posted by White_Pointer @ 17:01:10 AEST
You might remember a little while ago we reported that Capcom will be undertaking several projects to commemorate 15 years of Street Fighter, and the first was opened yesterday in Akihabara's Asobit City in Japan. The Street Fighter Art gallery features artwork ranging through the entire Street Fighter series starting from the original game. Most of the artwork on display had been seen before, having been used with manuals and promotional ad campaigns, but there were a few points of interest. The gallery featured some rare developer sketches, a recreated scene from the desk of Akira Yasuda (Chun-Li's creator), Street Fighter credit cards, Street Fighter Mobile phone stickers, and an ad announcing a new artbook that will be released later this month. The gallery was also selling lithographs of Akira Yasuda's work for 200,000 yen (that's about $1700 US dollars), and despite the high price, amazingly customers couldn't seem to get their orders in fast enough.

The gallery will be open until the 15th of June in Tokyo, and will then tour around other parts of Japan. Whether Capcom decides to take it overseas remains to be seen.
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Friday, June 13, 2003

New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Gameplay Movie!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 13:16:48 AEST
Arguably one of the most anticipated fighting titles to be coming out of E3 this year was Konami's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game. You've read our coverage, you've seen our screenshots, now see the game in action with our new gameplay movie! Check it out from our E3 Coverage on the game here!
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Yay! Another History Article
Posted by Pube @ 13:10:19 AEST
Yep, that makes two in two days. This time I've blown the dust off Karate Champ and its sequel, Karate Champ Vs. Check it out, and some pictures that will bring back memories perhaps too, right Here!

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Thursday, June 12, 2003

New History of Fighters Article!
Posted by Pube @ 16:46:21 AEST
Seeing Gooberman's computer's broken and there was a dire need for the History of Fighters to get a new addition to its database, I took it upon myself to write up an article on the 1979 classic "Warrior". Be sure to check it out here.
Enjoy, there'll be more to come.
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Game Critics E3 Awards
Posted by White_Pointer @ 12:52:09 AEST
You might remember a couple of weeks ago we reported that the Game Critics were announcing their own E3 awards. The nominations for the category of best fighting game were:

- Dead or Alive: Online (Tecmo / Xbox)
- Onimusha Blade Warriors (Capcom / PS2)
- Soul Calibur II (Namco / Xbox, PS2, GC)
- Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution (Sega / PS2)

And the winner is.... Soul Calibur II, but I guess that's no real surprise. For those interested in reading the full list of awards, you can read it here.
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Wednesday, June 11, 2003

Actor from MK movie found dead in home
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:15:32 AEST
Trevor Goddard, who is the actor that played Kano in the Mortal Kombat movie was found dead earlier this week in his Southland home from apparent suicide by overdosing on prescription drugs. He was 37 and was originally from Perth in Western Australia.
This is indeed some shocking news and certainly not news we like to report on.
The full article on MSNBC news can be read here. It's not known as of yet why he did it, but he was apparently in the middle of a difficult divorce, so that may have contributed to it.
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New Direct X Game Engine
Posted by Pube @ 20:55:01 AEST
This news isn't totally restricted to fighting games, but what the hey, its good news nonetheless. A company called Mercon Consulting has in the works a new 3D gaming engine called "Lugh3D". It boasts the following features:

Specifications :

-Import 3D models as objects
-Import 3D animated models as objects
-Lighting and Special Effects.
-Dynamic lighting
-Environmental reflections, mapping
-Incredible atmospheric effects
-Rain, snow, etc.
-Light scattering
-Particle systems effects (fire, explosions)
-Real-time projected shadows and caustics
-Bump mapping, displacement mapping
-Up to 500.000 polygons per frame !
-Deformation of landscape in real-time - geomorphing.
-Import full 3D levels, octree partioning
-Advanced physics engine.
-Realistic collisions for physics based objects
-Extensible physics objects extend aircraft, cars, etc.
-Rigid and dynamic based physics objects.
-Incorporated game AI
-Sound system incorporated to allow each object to project its own 3D sound

User Control:

-Drag and drop user control onto windows form.
-Fully functional from start with several default settings.
-Will allow developer to quickly and easily setup a full 3D environment.
-Package ideal for new or inexperience game developers wanting to quickly build 3D applications.
-Extensible Class Library:
-Includes all the functionality of the user control.
-Developer may extend all base classes for customization of rendering, AI, or physics
-Additional custom tools for model integration and level design.
-Package suited more for experienced developers seeking to publish games or graphics applications.

This obviously means that our beloved games are going to continue to look great and even greater in the future, great news!

Check out all the info at Mercon Consulting

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Another Dragon Ball Z game
Posted by White_Pointer @ 10:07:39 AEST
Dragon Ball Z fans will no doubt be excited by the announcement that Dragon Ball Z Budokai is coming to the Cube in October, but there's even more good news! There's also a new game coming to the GBA! Dragon Ball Z: Taiketsu , developed by the same guys who developed the Legacy of Goku, is currently slated for a November release.

"After our outstanding success with Dragon Ball Z(R) Budokai, we are very excited to be working with Atari to bring the first DBZ fighting game to the Game Boy(R) Advance," said Gen Fukunaga, president of FUNimation Productions, Ltd. "Atari knows how to bring the DBZ atmosphere and action to our fans, and we expect Dragon Ball Z(R) Taiketsu(TM) to be another great DBZ fighting-action game."

Tuesday, June 10, 2003

More Info on Dragon Ball Z for Gamecube
Posted by Pube @ 16:13:20 AEST
The blockbuster fighting game of 2002 makes its way to the Nintendo GameCube(TM) as Atari (Nasdaq: ATAR) today announced that Dragon Ball Z(R): Budokai(TM) will be available for Nintendo players nationwide this October. Created by DIMPS, Dragon Ball Z(R): Budokai(TM) has shipped more than 1.3 million units in North America since its December 2002 release on the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system.

"We are thrilled to bring Dragon Ball Z(R): Budokai(TM) to the Nintendo GameCube with a heart-pounding interactive parallel to some of the most exciting sagas from the animated television series," said Nancy MacIntyre, vice president of marketing, Atari's Beverly studio. "Nintendo GameCube owners who have eagerly awaited the Nintendo GameCube arrival will now be able to enjoy all the Dragon Ball Z(R) excitement that made Budokai such a hit."

Dragon Ball Z(R): Budokai(TM) spans from the Saiyan(TM) Saga through the Cell Games and allows players to experience the fantastic DBZ(R) universe. The game features five heart-pounding fighting modes, including Story Mode, where players reenact some of the most exciting scenes from the animated series, and Tournament Mode, where players can face off to crown a single DBZ(R) fighting champion. With 23 of the most famous DBZ(R) heroes and villains in full 3D, Dragon Ball Z(R): Budokai(TM) spans 29 heart-stopping levels and features over 60 different combo moves per character, including their most infamous attacks from the animated series.

Originally developed in Japan, the Dragon Ball series has become the number one animated series in many countries including Japan, France, Spain, Hong Kong and Mexico. It is the top-rated series on Cartoon Network's Toonami block and was the number-one rated show among all U.S. cable TV programs for 'tweens 9-14, boys 9-14 and men 12-24 during the 2002 season's launch line-up.


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Huge load of Merch at Ebay!
Posted by Pube @ 16:05:37 AEST
Yeah, I know this isn't that much great news but there is a whole crapload of Mortal Kombat and Capcom stuff at Ebay. Just goto the Ebay main page to check it out at www.ebay.com and type in Mortal Kombat or Capcom as the search string. Theres some nice stuff there so it's worth the trip over.
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Soul Calibur II Preview
Posted by White_Pointer @ 12:06:57 AEST
Our affiliates CGN have got themselves an import copy of Soul Calibur II and have written up a nice preview of it, giving us some extra details about the game such as the different modes of play. Here are some of the features:

• 16 characters battle each other with amazing real-time fighting gameplay
• 11 3D arenas in a variety of environments
• Link, Spawn® and Heihachi will be featured as platform-exclusive characters on the Nintendo GameCube™, Xbox“ and PlayStation®2 versions, respectively
• Necrid, a console exclusive character created by Todd McFarlane, is featured on all platforms
• Multiple game modes including Conquest, Training, Time Attack, and Survival
• More than 10 exhilarating game modes including; Arcade Mode, Time Attack Mode, Survival Mode, VS. Mode and Team Battle Mode
• New and improved Weapon Master mode increase replay value, and gives the chance to buy all 200+ weapons
• Unlockable features including characters, costumes, arenas and more
• Follow-up to the highly acclaimed Soul Calibur

New GBA SP colours
Posted by White_Pointer @ 10:37:01 AEST
We reported earlier today that Nintendo are releasing a new colour range for the GBA SP. Unfortunately, they aren't releasing them with the 20-odd colours that were shown at E3, but 2. Still, they are 2 pretty good ones...Onyx (black) and Flame (red). Check them out:

Monday, June 9, 2003

GBA SP hits 1 million units sold in the US
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:45:10 AEST
Yesterday Nintendo reported that is has now sold 1 million GBA SP's in the US. Not quite as quick as they hit the mark in Japan, but still pretty damn impressive and it's firmly established Nintendo as the portable gaming market leader. To commemorate this feat, Nintendo are releasing the GBA SP with a whole new colour range! Nintendo had about 20 new colours on show at E3 this year, so chances are these will be the ones released, or at least some of them, so make sure you keep an eye out for them!
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XBox 1.5 on its way?
Posted by White_Pointer @ 23:06:08 AEST
WAM and Dorimaga, weekly Japanese Video Games Magazines, have both reported that Microsoft is planning on releasing a new XBox called XBox 1.5 which was apparently shown very sparingly at E3. Not much is known about this new XBox apart from the fact that it's apparently a lot smaller than it's predecessor, which will have many XBox critics at least take notice as a gripe many people have with the system is it's admittedly large size.
When Microsoft is planning on releasing this new XBox is anybody's guess. Although, Japan hasn't had a price drop for the current XBox as the other territories have, and rumour has it that the current XBox's price will drop in Japan when XBox 1.5 is released.
We'll have more on this as it becomes available.
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Sunday, June 8, 2003

Nintendo's stance on importing
Posted by White_Pointer @ 0:04:46 AEST
Nintendo are beginning to take action against those European retail outlets that are selling imported games and hardware from North America and Asia. Apparently Nintendo have issued the order to them, that if they are caught, they will no longer be able to sell official Nintendo products. An interesting tidbit of news...since I know some of our European visitors actually do obtain some of their games in this fashion.
I have a better solution Nintendo...how about you stop making the PAL territories wait an extra 3 months after North America receives software titles and pieces of hardware? There's no reason why PAL territories need to wait that long to get them because the difference in program code between the two formats is quite negligible. This will solve the problem indefinately, I assure you. Still, Nintendo warned they were going to do it a few months back, and they've followed through.
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Saturday, June 7, 2003

New release date for Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition
Posted by White_Pointer @ 8:42:09 AEST
The newest addition to the MK series, exclusive to the GBA has had a slight change of schedule for release. But don't worry, it hasn't been pushed back like is the case most of the time. The release date has actually been brought forward! It's no longer scheduled for a release at the end of September, now we can expect it to hit the shelves in August. Great news for GBA owners!
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Thursday, June 5, 2003

Bloody Roar Extreme ships for XBox!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 22:11:03 AEST
Konami has just announced that the newest addition to the Bloody Roar series, Bloody Roar: Extreme, has now been shipped out to retail stores! It's the first title in the series to make an appearance on the XBox, and it looks very spiffy. You should be able to find it on the shelves of your local game store, so if you have an Xbox why not go and get it?
Don't forget we also have an Image Gallery full of plenty of screenshots of the game in action!
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Soul Calibur II PAL release date
Posted by White_Pointer @ 19:29:07 AEST
The console versions of Soul Calibur II have already been released in Japan, and we knew that the game was scheduled for an August release in North America, but up until now we didn't know when to expect it to come to the PAL territories. Well, citizens of Australia, Europe and New Zealand, you can stop wondering because your good old Webmaster has dug up the information we all wanted to know. Right now the game has a tentative PAL release of September 30th, so mark that down in your diaries! This is exclusive news, and you heard it here first!
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Video games protected by law
Posted by White_Pointer @ 8:55:43 AEST
A St Louis County law that would have prevented sales of Video games to minors has been disregarded by The United States Court of Appeals. The rule says that video games are protected under the First Amendment as a form of free speech and therefore cannot be regulated by the government. The court found that the county's reasons for preventing sales of video games to minors held no water at all, especially considering that in 83% of cases, it's the parent's or guardian's decision to purchase the game.

The ruling said:

"We do not mean to denigrate the government's role in supporting parents, or the right of parents to control their children's exposure to graphically violent materials. We merely hold that the government cannot silence protected speech by wrapping itself in the cloak of parental authority...To accept the county's broadly drawn interest as a compelling one would be to invite legislatures to undermine the First Amendment rights of minors willy-nilly under the guise of promoting parental authority. If the First Amendment is versatile enough to 'shield [the] painting of Jackson Pollack, music of Arnold Schoenberg, or jabberwocky verse of Lewis Carroll, we see no reason why the pictures, graphic design, concept art, sounds, music, stories, and narrative present in video games are not entitled to similar protection."

Tuesday, June 3, 2003

New Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution details and screenshots
Posted by White_Pointer @ 18:39:45 AEST
Some more details have been revealed about the brand new Playstation 2 exclusive title in the Virtua Fighter series, Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution. Here's what we now know about the game:

- As well as the 13 fighters from the arcade VF4, VF4:E has 2 new characters added...Brad and Goh. Brad uses Muay Thai, while Goh uses Judo.
- Most characters have been strengthened and their arsenal of moves expanded. Each character now possesses over 100 different moves.
- Every character utilises a different style martial arts.
- Players can truly customise their characters. Items of clothing and jewellery can be bought (and even won from your opponents) and worn by your fighters.
- You can enter your customised fighters into Quest mode where you'll be competing against AI based on the top Japanese VF Champions!
- An unparalleled graphics engine produces some of the most stunning graphics ever seen on the PS2.
- The fighting engine is by and large the same as VF4 with the addition of the new moves given to the characters.

The game is scheduled for a release next month, so look out for it! In the meantime, you can check out our new screenshots for it in our Image Gallery!
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New Featured Game!
Posted by White_Pointer @ 9:29:52 AEST
I said it would be done, and it has. As a result of a recent poll, we now have another new game series added to the lineup of games Blood-Sports.net covers! We now feature the Virtua Fighter series! The section opens with 6 FAQ's, more than 140 images/screenshots spanning across 7 image galleries and 4 movies including some recent E3 Footage of Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution! In all there's nearly 50 megs of Virtua Fighter goodness now freely available on the site, so check it out!
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Monday, June 2, 2003

Majesco Announces King of the Cage Licensing Agreement
Posted by White_Pointer @ 11:53:02 AEST
Majesco is one of the fastest growing video game publishers out there at the moment, and they've just signed a deal to make them grow even faster. They've entered into an exclusive Licensing agreement with King of the Cage, which is a real-life mixed martial arts fighting league. Under terms of the agreement, Majesco obtains the worldwide right to publish video games under the King of the Cage banner.

"We are excited to partner with King of the Cage and bring their unique and exciting brand of extreme fighting to the interactive entertainment arena, With the growing popularity of mixed martial arts fighting and the reputation behind King of the Cage, we believe we can expand our product lineup with an innovative property." . . .

Sunday, June 1, 2003

The days of the NES and SNES are over
Posted by White_Pointer @ 15:08:47 AEST
Even though we've thought that these two system have long been out of production by Nintendo, apparently they still were, up until now. Nintendo have officially stated that these two systems will no longer be rolling off the production line.

"The Famicom (better known as the NES) and Super Famicom (SNES) will no longer be in production after September in Japan. Both consoles have been in production since they were first released.
The Famicom will have its 20th anniversary this year."