Ninty (Nintendo) says Merry Christmas to Wii owners with the addition of 4 new games.
* Street Fighter(R) II: The World Warrior (Super NES(R), 1-2 players,
800 Wii Points): This game revolutionized the fighting-game genre with
characters that had unique fighting skills, speed, special moves and
unique endings.
* Super Castlevania(R) IV (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Simon
Belmont uses his trusty whip to fight the powers of evil on his way to
Dracula’s Castle.
* Toe Jam & Earl(TM) (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): Two
fun-loving aliens crash on Earth and must find 10 pieces of their
spaceship so they can get back home to Planet Funkotron.
* R-TYPE(R) (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This is a
completely faithful port – right down to the character details – of the
famous shooting-game masterpiece.
Thanks to www.kotaku.com for the heads up.
As I was checking the normal websites for video game news I came across an article for a game that I did a voice over for years ago.
So heres the article thanks to www.destructoid.com:
“Settle down, children, and let ol’ BBL tell you a tale; a tale of mystery, intrigue, and ultimate suffering. It is a story of Japanese shooters and their horrible and inappropriately localized US counterparts, of witchcraft, and sailboats. It’s the story of Mobile Light Force 2. I was lying about the sailboats. The witchcraft, on the other hand — you’ll have to read to find out.
Seriously, you would’ve figured that we’ve come far enough along that publishers wouldn’t screw with original content in such a way, but XS Games done and gone proved me wrong. Back in 2003 they took it upon themselves to publish a slew of shooters in the US — a noble endeavor indeed, but their execution was a little nutty. Seeking to establish some kind of brand recognition, they took two games – Gunbird and Shikigami no Shiro on the PS1 and PS2, respectively — and renamed them Mobile Light Force 1 and 2, despite having no original connection to one another and having been created by two completely seperate developers.
Capitalizing on what I can only assume was hailed in their offices as a fit of unmitigated brilliance, XS Games also gave them some quality box art, seen above — three Charlie’s Angels lookin’ ladies toting guns, blasting away robots, looking all sexy and whatnot. Again — no connection whatsoever to the original game. Sorry, games. Oh, did I mention? They used the same box art on both games. Two unrelated games by unrelated developers, lumped together as a series, and slapped with the (unrelated) box art. Though XS Games have since gotten wise with their delivery of the sequel, Mobile Light Force 2 stands as a testament to what happens when a great game runs through really, really stupid hands.
Sound wacky? You bet! And It only gets worse — or better, if you’re a shmup whore like good ol’ Linde. Hit the jump for more!
Mobile Light Force 2 (originally Shikigami no Shiro)
Developed by: Alfa Games
Butchered by: XS Games
Original Release: circa 2003
Bargain Binned: While it’s no longer in GameStop’s system (try searching for “Mobile Light Force”, you’ll come up with nothing), you’re bound to find a copy or six long unsold at game shops everywhere. Used around five bucks, new $7-10.
Let’s say you’re a publisher. You’ve just slapped down a chunk of change on distribution rights of a Japanese shmup — a genre that is notorious for bringing in virtually no money in the US gaming market — and you want to see if you can make it sell. You’re a no-name brand, for the most part, and you’re gunning for the impulse purchase market, mostly grandmothers looking for gifts and kids high on fresh allowance and slurpees browsing the shelves.
The rights you’ve purchased are for a game called Shikigami no Shiro, a shmup with a heavy anime influence. You’ve heard about this “anime” shit once or twice before — something about that Cartoon Network and those hyper little critters what burst out of balls and fight, that kind of thing. Big eyes, bigger breasts, the works. It seems to be getting kinda big, but– hell, a fad’s a fad, right? Let’s get rid of that. Plot? Screw plot, it’s about flying people who shoot flying ballet dancers. Ain’t gonna win any Oscars, right? In fact, let’s wipe the slate clean, wring out every last drop of creative content that Shikigami no Shiro might have, and throw in some ladies. No no — some dangerous lookin’ chicks. Guns and leather. Explosions. Robots. Friends, we’ve got a hit on our hands.
It’s hard not to look at a game like Mobile Light Force 2 and stifle the inevitable and overpowering laughter. This is a brand of stupidity that was once fiercely reserved for the early 90s, long before quality localization was more or less required for a marginally positive critical reception. Not only did XS Games wipe the name from Shikigami no Shiro, but the animation cuts throughout the game, the voice acting, and any semblance of story. Why? Well, it’s complicated.
See, we’re a bunch of namby pansies, and by we, I mean you. Despite games that deal with a variety of hard-hitting and at times even gruesome material, not to mention the entirety of the Silent Hill series, XS Games still thought the story behind Shikigami no Shiro was a little hard for US audiences to swallow. Truth is, they might have been right. Here’s a synopsis of the plot, culled from Jnk2k2’s review at Netjak:
The plot centers around a sadistic killer not unlike Japan’s own Tsutomu Miyazaki that carves his victims neatly with a knife over a 20 hour period, while they’re alive. Kind of grim – make that very grim, and definitely unsuitable for an audience that is quick to strike on any game that tackles mature themes.
It makes sense, if you think about it. Rockstar has the cash to back games like Grand Theft Auto and Bully. XS, on the other hand — hell, have you even heard of XS Games? There you go.
It’s nothing to cry over, really. If you ever found yourself lamenting a lack of riveting storytelling in, say, Gradius V, the dearth of such content in Mobile Light Force 2 might rub at you the wrong way. Shmup fans, though, will be pleased to know that the one thing that XS didn’t touch was the gameplay, and we should be thankful such is the case.
Mobile Light Force 2 isn’t the most innovative shooter to come down the pike, but since that pike is astonishingly bare these days, it’s worth picking up just by virtue of the genre it represents — and, moreover, it happens to be a damned good game. MLF2’s vertical arcade-style playing field bursts at the seams with its deluge of enemies and bright, shiny deathbullets. The graphics aren’t half bad, merging 2D player sprites with 3D backdrops and enemies. And the enemies — man, that’s almost something made even better by the lack of any sort of explanation or expository plot. Why are you flying over a metropolis, taking down scores of flying ballerinas, coffins, evil teddy bears, flying baby-head butterflies and many others that come after you wave after wave? The localization (or lack thereof) of Mobile Light Force 2 doesn’t say a word about it, making your crusade through the skies that much funnier.
The gameplay is basic with a handful of innovations to keep things interesting. The game begins after character selection, during which the player can choose from a variety of characters with different bullet patterns and special attacks — who, as you may have already guessed, are inexplicably placed in the game’s schema. Those three chicks on the cover? Nowhere to be found. But you can play as De Jon Kim — a flying bloke who, clad in a khaki trenchcoat and toting a guitar case, can fire fast streams of green fury and use a close-range spiritual saber as his secondary attack. Why? Why the hell not?
That’s another thing. All of the game’s six characters have secondary attacks which typically fall into two categories: close range and lock-on. These are utilized by holding down the fire button in lieu of a rapid-fire tap, offering interesting ways to dispatch the legions of foes that are bearing down upon you. Compound this with the standard-issue big blow-up crash bomb that you can occasionally pick up and you’ve got a lot of ways to play the five-level campaign of Mobile Light Force 2.
The game shakes up the standard conventions of the shmup genre in a couple of ways beyond just multiple characters. Score bonuses are attributed to kills based upon your proximity to the enemies that you’ve just blown up — in plain English, the closer you are to the baddo, the more points you get. Additionally, veering dangerously close to enemy bullets will instantly upgrade your attack to its fullest power, meaning that close shaves within hails of enemy gunfire can be dealt back upon them almost instantly. It’s a gameplay scheme that rewards expert play and style, and it pushes the challenge to the limit by providing reason to act like a jackass and zig-zag through as many insane bullet patterns as possible. Whole lot of fun.
What polish the game may have had hasn’t carried over through the localization. As I mentioned previously, the animated sequences peppered throughout the original Shikigami no Shiro are gone, and so are the original voices for the playable characters. In their stead are what I can only presume to be people pulled from the street outside of the publisher’s office on the day that they, you know, decided to handle that gay Japanese gibberish throughout the game — it didn’t fare so well. For example, while playing as Kuga Kohtaro, a direct hit will prompt him to say “Hang it up, sucka!”, which, you know, makes about as much sense as the rest of the game.
But then, shmups have never been about the fluff. It’s about the gameplay, and Mobile Light Force 2 — despite XS Games’ best attempts — has it in spades. It’s fast paced, difficult enough to merit a bunch of playthroughs, and while it won’t be replacing your copies of Ikaruga or Gradius V anytime soon, it’s still a worthy addition to any self-respecting gamer’s shmup library. Drop a couple of bones on this game, but hide it — explaining the game behind the tits-and-explosions cover, as you know by now, takes a little time”
Here is a video of the upcoming DS exclusive Square game tited It’s a Wonderful World…from the look of this video it sure is.
Everybody here at Radio GTN, Would like to wish all are listeners a Happy Holidays. Thanks for listening.
So the holidays are just about here and how should we celebrate?
By putting wiimotes and nunchucks on cats of course!
The idea behind the site is pretty awesome because putting things on heads of both people and animals can usually be pretty funny such as a pancake on a bunnys head or my head.
So now there is a website www.wiikitty.com where there are a bunch of pictures with cats and wiimotes.
On a side Wii note I picked up Elebits and Super Swing Golf this week they sure look fun but I’ve been to sleepy to play anything the last 2 days.
That’s right folks another exlusive no longer exclusive the one thought to be PS3 only Virtua Fighter 5 has officially been anounced for the 360.
The game is said to hit in the later part of the 07 summer for more stuff to read check here
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=71275
I am of course talking about the movie versions of Resident Evil being that RE4 the game has been out for a long while.
The rumors of 2 more resident evil movies have been squashed with the announcement that Resident Evil: Extinction will be the last Resident Evil movie.
I for one am really happy to hear this I am tired of the RE story being dragged through the mud… then thrown in a lake only to be pulled back out and shot.
I love the Resident Evil games they are one of my favorite game series of all time but the movies just plain suck.
The first one was entertaining but the 2nd one was just an insult.
Is it really that hard to make a good video game movie?
Is it really that hard to make a good zombie movie?
Oh and Paul W. Anderson please stop shoving your wife down peoples throats. There is no Alice in the Resident Evil universe and there really doesnt need to be. Why couldnt she be Jill or someone from the game?
Because he felt like making her into some kind of action star.
Look at this picture:
Does it make any sense to you?
So yeah I’m happy there are no plans to be a 4th movie but who knows maybe he’ll change his mind after he will no doubt butcher the castlevania movie he’s working on.
There have been 3 new Virtual console games added today:
Tennis (NES(R), 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Players slam a serve, fire a
blazing backhand and smash a forehand volley on their way to winning the
victory cup. Players can choose between five different levels of difficulty,
ranging from Beginner all the way up to Advanced. If players want to become
true champs, they should be ready to show off their most brilliant lobs and
most powerful smashes. Play a singles match or grab a partner for doubles, and
then choose an opponent. Players control the moves in tennis action so
intense, they’ll almost believe they’re at center court.
Space Harrier II(TM) (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Fantasyland
has been taken over by destructive forces, and a call for help comes from deep
in the universe. Space Harrier is quick on the scene, armed with his laser, to
defeat wave after wave of destructive forces through 12 thrilling stages, with
a dangerous boss waiting at the end of each round.
Military Madness(TM) (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, 600 Wii Points): Military
Madness is a futuristic simulation game that throws the player into the middle
of a war on the moon’s surface. The rules are simple, making it easy for
newcomers to enjoy the thrills of this war-strategy game. Players can see
easy-to-understand, detailed instructions from the Title screen. Military
Madness is also turn-based, allowing players to devise their strategy before
they move. To top it off, the units players have for each stage are already
decided, allowing them to concentrate on commanding. Use the terrain and
surround enemies to claim victory. Fight through all 16 stages and thwart the enemy’s ambitions! (thanks to www.kotaku.com)
You know what I dont care anymore I can’t get this damn system online anyway. **gets up-walks out of room-slams door**
I was thinking of something weekly to put up here besides game releases and then I saw a funny shirt and it was decided I will post a cool video game shirt every week.
Most gamers know a good video game shirt is hard to find so here is the first weeks shirt!
For the RPG gamers out there:
The ‘Your skill in reading as increased by 1 point’ can http://www.jinx.com/scripts/details.asp?productID=384 be found @ http://www.jinx.com/scripts/details.asp?productID=384
Also comes sized for the ladies 
This weeks new releases
Alexey’s Dwice (PC)
Wizard’s War Chest (PC)
Tuesday
Bubble Bobble Evolution (PSP)
Hipsoft Puzzle Game Collection (PC)
Rapala Tournament Fishing (XBOX360)
DVD
Lady in the Water
A Scanner Darkly
Fearless
The Simpsons: Season 9
Theater
Rocky Balboa
The Good Shepherd
Night at the Museum
We are Marshall
I’ve already been told that I am being dragged to see the new Rocky flick, I’ve actually never seen one before so who knows maybe I’ll like it.
Other then that I’m pretty happy its a slow week gives me time to catch up on some more games.
Any review request?
Check out this new rumpshaking WarioWare Wii video
Something tells me that if you beat the full version of this game you’ll be about 10 pounds lighter
No this isnt a post about the old horror movie with the doll that killed people, I just wanted to take a moment out explain what Childs Play is and post some links for it.
Childs Play is a charity that started in 2003 where people donate what ever they can be it a book, toys, games, a $1 to make the holidays a little more merry for sick children.
If you would like to know more about Childs Play and how you can help here is the link to the official website:
http://www.childsplaycharity.org/
There are other ways to donate many websites are also taking donations as entries to raffles
Such as Joystiq
http://www.joystiq.com/tag/raffle06
and
Play-Asia
http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-17-74-19f-49-en.html
I have personally donated to the cause and I just wanted to spread the word.
The latest Loco Roco Demo has been released! A new level will be decked out in full “snow-reindeer-and happy, colorful tree” glory. The new level will come with a “Christmas song guaranteed to stick in your head way into next year”, which will surely turn your holiday blahs into holiday yays! Best part is, it’s free!
Merry Christmas to all! Here’s how you can download it:
Download the North American version here
Download the Japanese version here
Download the European version here
Download the hexed demo for v2.80 and v3.00 from PSP117 here.
Christmas demo requires PSP Firmware Version 3.02
There is also a LocoRoco Holiday – Music Track to download.
So the holidays are coming up and you still don’t know what to get that certain someone? Or maybe you haven’t bought anything for anyone yet?
While I am no good at finding gift idea for the everyday folk I am pretty good at finding odd little cool things for the gamers and the geeky.
So lets start this rollercoaster ride of fun that I call I Heart Cool Stuff the Holiday Edition. Ok maybe it’s not exactly as fun as a rollercoaster ride but there are lines and it will make you nauseous.
For the gamer who likes to travel with epic sized games (or maybe is just spending the holidays with the family and needs some games to take their mind off of… well the family
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(Castlevania: PoR, Final Fantasy III, Metal Gear Solid Portible Ops and Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories)This covers both portable systems giving the gamers hours worth of entertainment
For the openly perverted gamer:
 < ~ Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 is a game filled with girls in bikinis that bounce... a lot... in all kinds of different directions.
If they already have the game or they don’t have a 360 no worries!
Here is a Helena poster which runs for about $10 bucks over at play-asia.com
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It’s been a while since the list of backwards compatible games has been updated so hearing about this makes me very happy. So as usual I’ll keep it short and sweet… Ok I know sometimes I make it kind of long but thats when I’m ranting about something.
Anyway here is a list of games that you can now play on your 360:
Buffy
DOA:U
Destroy All Humans
DW4
Evil Dead:FoB
Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy
Fairly Odd Parents: Breakin’ da Rules
Family Guy
Far Cry: Instincts
I-Ninja
Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude
Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
MotoGP
MX Unleashed
Open Season
Pariah
Psychonauts
Rainbow Six: Lockdown
Rapala Pro Fishing
Scarface
Shark Tale
Shenmue II
Splinter Cell: Double Agent
The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie
Ultimate Spider-Man
Wakeboarding Unleashed: Featuring Sean Murray
Whacked!
Winback 2: Project Poseidon
Xiaolin Showdown
I saw this over on Kotaku.com and just had to post it because it was so super cute.
Not much out this week.
Monday
College Hoops 2K7 (PS2)
Disney’s Chicken Little: Ace in Action (WII)
Tuesday
Anarchy Online: Lost Eden (PC)
Blazing Angels (PS3)
Blitz: Overtime (PSP)
Elebits (WII)
Far Cry: Vengance (WII)
Full Metal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy (DS)
Metal Slug Anthology (WII)
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, The (GCN)
Shrek Smash n’ Crash Racing (PSP)
Star Trek: Legacy (XBOX360)
Star Wars: Lethal Alliance (DS)
Super Swing Golf (WII)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas (PC)
World Series of Poker: Tournament of Champions (WII)
DVD
The Chronicles of Narnia (4 Disc Special Edition)
Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (DVD and Blu-Ray)
World Trade Center
Theater
Eragon
The Pursuit of Happyness
Charlotte’s Web
Ok so its Monday and what does that mean? It means 4 new games have been added to the virtual console. Now if I could only get my system to go online then I would be able to play these games but sadly I still haven’t figured out whats going on with it. anyway here is whats new:
Alien Crush (TurboGrafx-16)
Gunstar Heroes (Genesis)
Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine (Genesis)
Ice Hockey (NES)
Thanks to joystiq.com
[newline] Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection is said to be a downloadable game and the release date and pricing is yet to be determined. The news snippet also mentioned that the game will feature high definition graphics and a playable Jinpachi.
The game is expected to be a straight port of the arcade (only requiring about 800 MB of hard drive space) but in 1920 x 1080 true HD resolution. The screen shot with the insert shows this dramatic visual improvement. At this small of a file size it would be impossible to include all the ending CG in SD let alone HD.
Modes confirmed are Arcade Mode, Ghost Battle, and Gallery Mode.
http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/game/docs/20061208/tk5.htm
After going so long without hearing anything about this game I started to worry that it would never see the light of day but spotting a bit of news over at the-magicbox.com has given me new hope that there is still a new Silent Hill coming out.
So here is the news along with my thoughts which will be in italic so you can know which is which.
P S P
- Konami revealed new details on Silent Hill: Origins for PSP:
- The game is developed by Climax, it was originally planned as a remake of Silent Hill 1.
^This is not news^
- The story takes place before Silent Hill 1, at the end of story there is a connection to Silent Hill 1
^This also isn’t really news well I guess it is news…. old news. Even if it they hadn’t already announced that the game was a prequal doesn’t the name “Origins” suggest it?^
- The flashlight and radio elements will be in the game again, with some emerging changes
^The first 4 Silent Hills had a flashlight and radio I can’t think of anything new that can be done with those items that haven’t been done in a game before… I really want this game to be good but so far the news for it has been kind of lacking^
- The laser target has been removed, there is a new mechanism to aim at targets
^I remember pictures of the laser pointer but I guess now its gone^
- To manage items, players need to deposit items in crates and return to the same crate to pick up items
^Wow! That’s kind of like Resident Evil!^
- Many scenes from Silent Hill 1 will be in the game, except Toluca Lake district
^Many scenes? do they mean areas/ scenery? ^
- There are additional places to explore such as hospital, hotel, theatre, psychological institute and a meat factory
^There was a hospital in every Silent Hill, a Hotel in 2, there was also a meat factory in the second game so… why are they on this list?^
- Composer Akria Yamaoka will provide 15 tunes for the game
^I was fooled by this once before when they said he was composing the Silent Hill movie, is he doing original music? I need clarification^
- The game is 70% completed, and aiming for a February 2007 release
^My guess is we’ll see this game sometime in the summer^
- The producer is examining a possible PS2 version of the game
^ I would most likely buy that version also^
Just a few days after the release of Terra Soft Solutions’ Yellow Dog Linux v5.0, hackers found a way to rip Blu-ray movies onto the PS3 hard drive.
Yellow Dog Linux v5.0, which can be downloaded at Terra Soft’s site, allows users to turn their PlayStation 3 into a personal computer. The hard drive is segmented to prevent users from manipulating the PS3’s own software, but that hasn’t stopped hackers from exploiting Sony’s new console.
Multiple sites, including PVRWire, are demonstrating methods to illegally copy Blu-ray movies to the PS3 hard drive. Since Blu-ray drives are not yet available on PCs, the PS3 version of Linux is the first user-accessible OS capable of working with the new media.
Unlike music CDs, which allow users to create back-up copies for personal use, Blu-ray and DVD movies carry express copyright laws forbidding any form of duplication. Even ripping a Blu-ray disc to a PS3 for your own enjoyment is in violation of these laws.
Via IGN
Dig the pretty peekchures!
The Japanese Super Safe Wii Safety Manual
From hitting your friend in the face to throwing your Wii away with burnable trash, Nintendo Co., Ltd. has you covered. The Japanese safety manual is extensive to say the least. Sometimes are good to know (like the Sensor Bar doesn’t like Christmas trees and the Wii-mote can interfere with pacemakers as
previously posted), and other things seem out of left field. I mean, do people really need to be told not to pour orange soda on their Wii console?
(more…)
Monday
Barnyard (WII)
Grand Theft Auto Trilogy (PS2)
Kirby: Squeak Squad (DS)
Tuesday
Ant Bully, The (WII)
Brothers in Arms: D-Day (PSP)
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin (DS)
Fight Night Round 3 (PS3)
Ice Age 2 (WII)
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (PSP)
Rayman Raving Rabbids (PS2, PC)
Star Trek: Legacy (PC, XBOX360)
Star Wars: Lethal Alliance (PSP)
Zatch Bell! Mamodo Fury (GCN)
Wednesday
Full Auto 2 (PS3)
SpaceStation Sim (PC)
WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2007 (PSP)
DVD
Miami Vice (Also on HDDVD)
Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man’s Chest
Beerfest
24: Season 5
The Rocky Anthology
Dungeons and Dragons: The Complete Animated Series
National Lampoons Christmas Vacation (Blu-Ray and HD-DVD)
A Christmas Story (Blu-Ray and HD-DVD)
Theater
The Holiday
Apocalypto
Blood Diamond
Unaccompanied Minors
Today 4 new games have been added to the Wii virtual console
1. Victory Run (600 points – TG-16)
2. Columns (800 points – Genesis)
3. Ristar (800 points – Genesis)
4. Donkey Kong Jr. (500 Wii points – NES*)
Based off the Ps3 play b3yond commercial.
