SDCC brought fighting game fans one of the biggest surprise announcements since (zOMG) Street Fighter IV.  Not only is Capcom working with Namco to produce a Street Fighter x Tekken cross-over fighter, Namco is producing their own versus game, Tekken x Street Fighter,  presumably using the Tekken 6 engine. Both games are expected to have tag-team fighting and team-up super moves, and both are loosely scheduled for a 2012 release.

Capcom is already working feverishly on Marvel vs Capcom 3, but managed to put together a proof of concept teaser for fans. The announcement came at Capcom’s “Street Fighter Mania! SSFIV and Beyond” panel. Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono was stopped during his Q&A session once he asked where fans wanted to see the Street Fighter franchise go in the future. Katsuhiro Harada, producer of the Tekken series for Namco, stood and joined Ono at the speakers’ table to offer a challenge.

Ono has since mentioned that these games have been on the table for over a year but only began development in the past few months. He said neither side is assisting the other and each company has full creative control over how they handle the characters. Ono fully expects Capcom’s version to be ready long before Namco’s.

Famitsu was able to get a few answers out of Ono as he returned to Japan. So far, Ono only confirmed the appearance of the four characters featured in the teaser gameplay video, but said it would surprise him if either game had a smaller roster than Tekken 6 or Super Street Fighter IV. He also hinted that there may be alternate versions of Street Fighter characters to help balance the match-ups.

Ono said he’s aiming for 2 on 2 gameplay, stating that after seeing MvC3’s 3 on 3 fights, he realized he’s too old to handle that much chaos on screen. Gameplay of each company’s release will be very similar to current SF and Tekken releases and should feel very familiar to fans of each. He hinted at adding assists to help add some variety to his own project.

In regards to collaboration, Ono said that neither company is sharing 3D models or design assets and are going to recreate each character as an homage to their strengths and assets they’re known for. He joked that Namco wouldn’t know one way or the other if Capcom decided to make Nina appear naked in the game, but the same could apply to Chun-Li.

Ono has said not to expect any updates from Capcom until Captivate in April 2011, but with the recent string of leaks that have proven to be true, we’ll see how well they keep this under wraps.

“Uhh, hay guys… it’s time for a reboot…”

Dark clouds foreshadow rain.  Similarly, the new Mortal Kombat live action video that made its way onto the web seemed to foreshadow a coming storm of new media for the almost-forgotten franchise.  Timing couldn’t have been better, in all honesty.  Just around the corner is E3, the place where video games can be reborn (or at least, given a second chance).  E3 is where many fans are expecting to see something new from the Mortal Kombat franchise, having just been acquired by a new developer.  It’s been a little less than a year since Midway went bankrupt and Mortal Kombat went to WB Games (now, NetherRealm).

That much time away from the spotlight can leave most properties in a stalemate of sorts.  Mortal Kombat is no exception to becoming stale, especially considering the series hasn’t been terribly relevant since the 3^rd entry.  The new Mortal Kombat movie on YouTube turned out to be nothing more than a really elaborate job application for an aspiring director.  However, it seemed to springboard perfectly into this: a true trailer for a truly new Mortal Kombat game, simply titled Mortal Kombat.

The trailer, which is now available to view any time on themortalkombat.com, was released just a bit before E3 and barely a week after the live action video was abuzz on YouTube.  What is shown is a phenomenal little trailer for a gorgeous looking Mortal Kombat game, easily the simplest and prettiest entry in the series in years.  But, despite the earlier proclamations otherwise, to call it new is a bit of a stretch.

Let’s call it a throwback, but not in a derogatory sense, because it throws back very, very well.  Based off of this short trailer, it seems obvious that Ed Boon and company are at least trying to make this game into the MK game fans have been waiting for since MKII.  It’s safe to say that the games had become a bit too diluted and had strayed a bit far from what made them the classics that they are.  Adding 3D environments, boats of new characters, weapons, and new stories are all well and good, but the world became too much and got too far from what MK fans had loved.

So, MK, it seems, is going back to its roots.  2D fighting, classic characters, classic environments, and classically brutal violence are all in this trailer attempting to showcase that Mortal Kombat is back.  No character shown is from any game later than Mortal Kombat 3.  The returning characters seem to have (for the most part) reverted back to their simpler forms, like Sub-Zero and Reptile who resemble similar looking ninjas, but not pallet swapped ones, and Kung-Lao and Raiden who have been given a modernized MKII makeover.

Environments that we see are ones that fans have been demanding, like The Pit and The Dead Pool as well as others, all given a modern sheen.  But most importantly, the game seems simpler, yet  almost simultaneously deeper.  The games in this genre that have had the most success have been ones that anyone can pick up and play, but with layers and layers of depth to give the hardcore players new nooks and crannies to salivate over.

Mortal Kombat has never been known as a game to feature a really in-depth combat system until the later games, at which point it almost became too complex, and no longer pick up and playable.  This trailer shows a game that’s in 2D, which will mean less complex controls, while at the same time showing what appears to be an intense combo system filled with crazy juggles and special moves.  It would be hard to argue that Boon and the boys had taken a cue from the latest incarnations of Street Fighter and have really taken a game that had lost its luster, simplified it, and added some much-needed depth.

But it’s also obvious that this game is here to please the fans, very similar to how Capcom did it with Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV.  It’s hard to argue against emulating success, and harder to argue with the success of SFIV and SSFIV, which have revitalized the fighting genre and thrust it back into the mainstream.  Can Mortal Kombat continue the fighting genres hot streak?  Calling all you suckers for the old school:  Whether it’s a reboot, a throwback, or what, it looks badass and it looks like Mortal Kombat is back.

Now we’ve come a long way since Mountain Dew and Funions.  Teams of experts are working everyday to perfect the uses of caffeine.  But where can you find these miracles of science?  Most gamers first look for convenience, and where better to find look than a local convenience store?  Most stores will carry a variety of energy drinks such as Monster, Red Bull or Amp.

The problem with common store-bought energy drinks is their focus audience.  Being a gamer, you may find that these drinks work for you but they weren’t designed for your needs.  Ignorance will be your greatest defeat if you don’t know what’s out there.  If you’re looking to wean yourself off of the everyday energy drink, a good place to start is Hot Topic.  They carry a wide range of energy drinks and candies designed by gaming companies.  One of the most popular on the market is Mana Energy shots.  Mana comes in a bulb shaped bottle that fits in your palm.  It’s blue, loaded silly with B vitamins and requires you to be 18 or older to purchase (so you know it’s good).  This shot of energy is popular in electronic stores as well because it supports PC gamers, mainly World of Warcraft players.  After personally sampling Mana, a single sip was the equivalent of a 5 hour energy.  After taking the entire shot, I felt a burst of energy within seconds which slowly evened out but kept me active for over 24 hours, and the taste was pretty fantastic.  Mana makes several other products including a Mana counterpart called Potion, zing.  Potion comes in the same bulb bottle, but is red. It doesn’t match up to Mana in content and the taste only makes you wonder why you didn’t take the blue pill.

A new energy drink popping up in stores comes from the Neuro energy drink company.  They offer several different drinks to help with such things like weight control, mental focus, stress, and even vitamin-enriched water.  Being a gamer, you’re going to want to focus on their best selling drink: Neuro Sonic.  It comes in a sleek red bottle with a pretty sweet twist-off cap.  Each Neuro drink doesn’t just list nutritional value on the back of the bottle, but has a list of main ingredients and why you should care.  We’ve heard of the B vitamins and Taurine and Guarana but there are a few interesting components that help with focus, mental function, memory, endurance and alertness.  Basically you’re going to play harder and longer, and utilize every one of your senses required to be a dominating gamer.  After tasting Neuro Sonic, I didn’t get the same burst of energy as other drinks or energy shots, but a wave of euphoria and alertness.  It was like when Peter Parker realized he no longer needed glasses.  I also felt really motivated.  I could dominate Zeus, make the game winning kill a triple, or ding to level 80.  For a complete list of where to find Neuro drinks, just visit their site: www.drinkneuro.com.

A few of the newest products to come out in the open come from two companies: Makers of Mana Energy and Think Geek.  The Mana people came out with Vampire Blood soon after making Mana and Potion.  This imaginative drink comes in a small IV packet to give it that freshly-nicked look from your local medical center (complete with greedy blood fingerprints).  The interesting idea behind Vampire Blood isn’t just the cosmetic aspect, but the content.  Like real blood, Vampire Blood has potassium, protein and iron.  Don’t worry though, if you get hooked on Vampire Blood it’s not that you’re becoming one of the undead; you just have a new-found taste for human blood.  Gamers liked Vampire Blood so much that Mana released a product for the walking dead as well: Zombie Blood.  Much like Vampire Blood, Zombie Blood comes in an IV packet, but is a pleasant coagulated-green color.  With the trendy blood prints around the bag, it also sports a bio hazard stamp and a few helpful tips, should the product reanimate the dead.  Zombie Blood has the same nutrients as real blood, but has a delicious “Lifeless Lime” flavor.  Vampire Blood was interesting and definitely gave me the boost I was looking for, but if the realistic bloody aftertaste isn’t your thing, I would recommend Zombie Blood.

Mana Energy products can be found at Hot Topic and most electronic stores, but for full access to all their products you can go to their website www.manapotions.com, or visit the wonderfully nerdy conglomerate Think Geek at www.ThinkGeek.com. Think Geek not only sells every product in this article, they also make their own products.  Two competing products I reviewed come from Harco Laboratories, which is in association with Mana Energy, and one of Think Geek’s very own.  Harco Labs released Nuclear Energy Tubes.  These creative tubes sport a 50s fallout-look, and flavors are named after atomic elements such as plutonium, radium, and uranium.  Each tube contains 90mg of caffeine.  After taking a very small palm full of nuclear powder, I was buzzed for more than 5 hours.  This product is very impressive and doesn’t pussy-foot around when they say it will blow you away.  Think Geek made a similar product called Nixie Tubes.  They don’t offer the same glamour or creative advertisement as Nuclear Tubes but they kick it up to a whole gram (100mg) of caffeine.  After trying Nixie tubes, I found myself enjoying the familiar buzz, but those extra 10mgs didn’t seem to make a difference.  So which one should you try?  I’d say either one is fine.  It’s really a question of where you shop and what you’re more comfortable with.

If after trying a few of these caffeinated goodies, you start feeling adventurous for the strange and new, I would recommend lurking the Think Geek site.  They do an excellent job of organizing their products and have a vast selection of caffeinated food, drinks and candy.  A few favorites amongst pro gamers are their caffeinated lollipops, which come in flavors ranging from the simple strawberry to the obscure bacon flavored!  Caffeinated foods are another interesting take, with such products as Perky Jerky that gives the popular protein snack an extra kick without jitters or crashing.  Think Geek offers up several choices in energy drinks but if you really want to sample an exotic wake up call, you need to try their hand picked caffeinated tea and tea extracts.  Did I mention they’re hand-picked by monkeys?  That’s right, I said monkeys.  These damn dirty apes know how to make a mean cup of joe and it’s great for your immune system.

The hunt for the ultimate source of energy continues.  It’s all about trial and error; the listed products in this article will, without a doubt, give you an advantage in gaming.  If you’re looking to boost other parts of your life ,by all means, visit these great websites.  You can buy straight from the site or visit their list of retailers that carry their products.  Have fun, don’t die, good gaming!

Mentioned Companies/Sites

• Mana Energy, Harco Laboratories: www.manapotions.com
• Neuro Energy Dinks: www.drinkneuro.com
• Think Geek: www.thinkgeek.com

Product Testers

• Chase Cutler: Gamer, Site Writer
• Dakota Drew:  Pro PC Gamer
• Judy Latimer: PC Gamer
• Mike Villa: Pro Gamer

Thanks To all PR/Marketing who contributed samples

• Anh Nguyen: Neuro Energy
• Shane Peterman: Think Geek
• Aaron Rasmussen: Mana Energy

Damn, I Ran Out of Red Blocks…

As of yesterday, there has been a ton of scuttlebutt around the internet about a new Mortal Kombat video that’s been making the ‘rounds.  Starting on Kotaku, who broke the video, and then making its way to the YouTube, this ten minute video displays a gritty, violent and realistic (kinda) take on Mortal Kombat, and people have been blowing this thing up with questions of its legitimacy.  There have been TONS of questions, rumors and speculation about what it is.  Is it a trailer for a sequel or reboot to the film franchise?  Is it viral marketing campaign for a new game to be released?  We actually have the answer for you, but let’s take a minute and dissect what was seen in the video.  Warning: here be spoilers. If you haven’t seen the video, you can view it here!

Breakdown:

We start out with seeing Jackson “Jaxx” Briggs (played by Michael Jai White, aka Spawn) who is running a major crimes unit in fictional Deacon City.  The next scene shifts us into an interrogation scene involving Jaxx and an unknown person in the shadows.  Jaxx begins showing us police profiles on Reptile and Barakka; one is a freak serial killer who suffers from a rare skin disease and the other is a failed surgeon who tattooed and pierced his face and put 10” blades in his forearms, respectively.  Next, we are introduced to Johnny Cage and we are shown a fight scene between Barakka and Cage, who was working undercover for the police department.  We then get introduced to Shang Tsung, who is apparently putting on a fighting tournament involving the world’s best fighters, assassins and serial killers.  Agent Briggs is attempting to enlist the services of the man in the shadows, a former assassin, to enter the tournament and “kill them all”.  This is when we’re introduced to FBI agent Sonya Blade (Jeri Ryan) who discusses someone known as Sub-Zero with the man in the shadows.  It is revealed that our shadow man had killed Sub-Zero’s brother and not Sub-Zero, his intended target.  We are then explained that the man in the shadows is a former assassin that no longer uses his real name and goes by the alias “Scorpion”.  Then the words Mortal Kombat flash on screen.  No credits.

Characters:

In a 10-minute clip, we are introduced to a whole ton of characters from the game.  Barakka, Jaxx, Sonya Blade, Reptile, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, Johnny Cage and Shang Tsung all make appearances, even if only via dialogue.  We see many of the characters have much in common with their in game counterparts, but they are set in a very gritty and realistic world versus a world filled with magic and martial arts.  For example, instead of being part of a race of people just like him, Barakka is actually just a failed plastic surgeon who inserts blades into his arms and becomes a serial killer.  Reptile on the other hand, is a serial killer who removes the heads of his victims and eats them; he also suffers from a rare skin disease that resembles scales and turns his eyes inside-out.  Other characters stay true in certain respects, like Scorpion using his roped weapon to kill someone, Johnny Cage dying, etc.  But all of the major characters shown have some kind of difference made to them to explain their bizarre characteristics in this gritty and realistic world.  Many of those hardcore fans who are purists and prefer the feel of the source material may be turned off by the idea of setting these characters in a “real world” environment, but the general consensus online is that this is a preferred way to look at the Mortal Kombat mythos.  Since it wouldn’t technically be a sequel, the characters can be ret-conned in this way without ruining the previous films.  Although, one would argue that it would be hard to “ruin” the second film.

Story:

As stated in the above paragraphs, the story revolves around a former assassin, now known only as Scorpion, who is being hired by the Deacon City police to infiltrate and assassinate members of an underground fighting tournament run by Shang Tsung.  We know that Scorpion’s only motivation for helping is his desire to kill a man named Sub-Zero who will be competing in the tournament.  We can only speculate as to why Scorpion wants to kill Sub-Zero, but it can be safe to assume that it involves some kind of betrayal or revenge plot.  Since up to this point the film has only loosely resembled the source material, we can’t assume that Scorpion is a ghost or that Sub-Zero killed his family like in the games.  In fact, we can almost surely assume that’s NOT what is going on here.  Aside from the basic plot and a few character reveals, that’s really all we’re given for this story.  Fans are left wondering if this is a reboot for the films, or even just a reboot for the games. Is it a way to restart the games and give them a fresh new take?  Regardless, many people in forums and threads online are really digging this portrayal.

So, What’s The Story:

Kotaku has since explained that this clip was actually a “test run” of sorts.  Jeri Ryan (of Star Trek) who plays Sonya Blade, revealed via Twitter that the director of the clip, Kevin Tancharoen, actually had done the film to sell Warner Brothers on his vision for a re-booted Mortal Kombat movie.  So, it’s not a trailer for a movie, it’s not a trailer for a game and it’s not viral marketing.  It is, in fact, just a short film created by a director who wants to get hired to make this movie and is attempting to convince Warner Brothers to let him do so.  From all the fan and non-fan reaction online, he  just may get the job.  But I don’t know if I’m sold on an idea of Mortal Kombat being done in this way.  I prefer the magic and martial arts angle placed on the games and earlier films.  Sure, it may have seemed cheesy and unrealistic, but so does Lord of the Rings if you break it down in the same way.  What say you?  REACT TO ME!

Rumors afloat around the interwebz insist that Activision will announce a remake of GoldenEye 007, the classic N64 title, for the Nintendo Wii.  While the game has been all but confirmed, the resulting outcome may not be what everyone thinks it will be.  So, let’s do what any good website would do: speculate horribly on the rumors and possible outcomes of this title and incite flame wars about it! I mean, it’s what I do…  right?

Same Nintendo, New Generation of Suck:

Okay, so as we all know, GoldenEye was the most popular title on the N64 (arguably) and not only helped make that system the success that it was, but it was also the game to make First Person Shooters a reality on home consoles versus the “Only For PC” option that they were before.  Naturally, it seems only fair (and in some ways nostalgic) that Nintendo would be the console that gets exclusivity for this remake…

Wait, what?

So you’re saying the Wii, the worst console for the FPS genre, is now getting a remake of one of the most popular console FPS’ in history?  I can’t even think of an analogy that matches the stupidity of this.  There are so many systems that would be better suited to run a game of this (potential) caliber, that I’d almost rather see it on PC than on the Wii, at least not exclusively.  But alas, Nintendo probably has some kind of perma-lock on the rights to any remake of GoldenEye, so we’re stuck with them.  The one good thing about it being on the Wii is that we’re sure to get some kind of crappy peripheral to make us feel like we aren’t total losers holding that controller/nunchuk combination…

Oh great, Nintendo.  Thank you so much for putting that orange thing on the barrel of the gun.  For a second there I thought my friends and neighbors would be worried that I’d shoot my expensive LCD TV with a golden gun that just so happened to look like a Nintendo controller.

Same Story, New Bond:

While the story should essentially be the same, speculation is that it will be re-tooled for a modern audience with a new Bond.  There have been hints that Daniel Craig, the current on-screen Bond, will be in the main role.  For licensing and royalty reasons, this game is going to require all new character models, and will not be able to feature Pierce Brosnan or any of the other actors who allowed their likenesses for the original.  Craig is the obvious choice to be Bond since he will likely be the Bond in films for the foreseeable future.  I actually like the idea of making Craig the new lead and giving this game a grittier feel like the current films.  If this is in fact true, then this is one of the bright spots of this remake.  Let’s hope Craig has a better experience than he did on the Quantum of Solace game, which received largely mixed reviews.

Overcooked, Not Rare:

We’re all aware that Rare was the company behind the original GoldenEye, as well as many of Nintendo’s more successful titles from that decade.  However, Rare was purchased by Microsoft in 2002 and Activision has owned the rights to the Bond franchise for some time now.  This means that GoldenEye Wii is not going to be at all a re-release, but a true re-make.  What does that mean from a game stand-point?  It means a completely different game engine from a completely different developer.  Really, it essentially means that nothing at all about the original and the remake will be the same, save for the name and the concept (oh, and the Facility level).

Activision has been known for beating franchises to death like they’ll win something if they keep doing it (Tony Hawk, Guitar Hero, etc).  However, they have been known to put out some semi-quality titles (Call of Duty) and being that this game will probably be developed by Treyarch (Infinity Ward’s red headed little step brother), it’ll likely be a better FPS than the original GoldenEye.  But, we don’t go back and play GoldenEye today because it still holds up as a great FPS; we play it because of the nostalgia that it offers!  In fact, as an FPS, the game has aged horribly.  Activision should be AS focused on re-creating the nostalgia as they should be with creating a good FPS.  I think most fans would prefer a straight re-release of this title on XBLA, but Nintendo and Microsoft argued about the monies and killed many of our dreams of that happening.  Maybe, they’ll both see the error of their ways and see that a port is a much more viable option and probably more financially stable an idea than this game.

The Verdict:

That’s right.  I’m going to go ahead and admit that the idea of this game completely and simultaneously thrills and terrifies me.  I hold my arms wide open for modernizing or even reimagining games, but is this one game that can’t be remade?  Again, I may be part of a minority here, but I believe that the original title was lightning in a bottle.  This would have to have the right mix of nostalgia and great modern gameplay in order to build on the success of the original.  I feel that ultimately this game will fail because people will be able to enjoy it, but will be looking for more than that, and they’ll walk away disappointed.  There is a reason why not a single Bond game since N64’s classic has been able to live up to the original.  All of the Bond titles have been an improvement in some way, but what hasn’t been unable to be captured up to this point is the feeling we all got when we sat around with our friends and played this game till 4 a.m.  Activision, I hope you’re up to the challenge.

We haven’t posted in a bit, don’t worry we’re not dead! More great content coming soon, as well as another podcast. Our last one wasn’t, how should we put this, up to snuff.

The games available to compete in were Soul Calibur IV, Tatsunoku VS. Capcom, Guilty Gear Accent Core, Blazblu, Marvel VS. Capcom 2, Street Fighter III: Third Strike, Super Street Fighter II Turbo: HD Remix and of course Street Fighter IV. The attendance for the event was huge with entries for SFIV reported as high as 1100 players.

Great players from all over the world arrived to represent their respective countries, but most notably, Daigo Umehara from Japan and the surprise newcomer, Eduardo Perez from Puerto Rico. On the American front, west coast and east coast players were present as well, with notable players such as Alex Valle, Mike Watson, John Choi, David Sirlin, Graham Wolf, Justin Wong, Sanford Kelly and Martin Phan, amongst many others, making strong showings.

Although the weekend was filled with great moments and tons of great matches, most notably Sanford Kelly’s pair of victories over Justin Wong in Marvel VS. Capcom 2, and Takashi “Dan” Hukushi in Street Fighter IV, (with Cammy no less!) the gem of the tournament had to be Justin Wong and Daigo Umehara’s set of Street Fighter IV matches for the Evolution 2009 SFIV championship. Justin Wong, after being sent to the losers bracket in the finals, won the losers bracket after defeating Sanford Kelly and played a fantastic series of matches with Daigo, forcing a reset (Sending Daigo to the losers and starting a final set of matches.) Justin Wong showed a wide spectrum of knowledge of the game and his match-ups as well as an amazing ability to zone his opponents with his basic moves. Unfortunately for Justin, his skill was not a match for Daigo as he was unable to defeat Umehara’s Ryu after initially picking Abel, (which Daigo had some trouble with earlier but was able to defeat soundly in his subsequent match with smart use of his crouching strong (medium punch).) after being told by the crowd to change characters, Justin settled (surprisingly) on Balrog (boxer (Justin typically plays Rufus)) with which he had the most success, bringing the set down to the wire. Daigo was able to fend Justin’s tricky, powerful Boxer off and become the world’s first Street Fighter IV champion.

Here is a tournament results list for those who are interested.

Street Fighter IV Tournament Results

1. Daigo Umehara (Ryu)
2. Justin Wong (Rufus, Boxer, Abel)
3. Ed Ma (Akuma)
4. Sanford “Santhrax” Kelly (Akuma, Cammy)
5. Long “ShadyK” Tran (Akuma)
5. Eduardo “Vvv scrub” Perez-frangie (Boxer, E. Honda)
7. Takashi “Dan from Japan” Hukushi (Ryu)
7. Ricky Ortiz (Rufus)

Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix Tournament Results

1. Hung “Afro Legends” Nguyen (Boxer, Dee Jay)
2. John Choi (Ryu)
3. Damien “Damdai” Dailidenas (Ken, Zangief)
4. Graham Wolfe (Boxer)
5. David Sirlin (Fei Long, Cammy, Dictator)
5. Louis “Thelo” Paquin (E. Honda)
7. Alex “CaliPower” Valle
7. Alex “Sin” Salguero

Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike 2v2: Final Results

1.Justin Wong (Chun Li) and Issei Suzuki (Yun)
2. Jimmy “Emphynaps” Tran (Urien) and Rommel (Yang)
3. Ryan “Fubarduck” Harvey (Chun Li) and Mark “Mopreme” Royogski (Ryu)
4. Alex Valle (Ken) and J.R. Rodriguez (Akuma)
5. Lee Cephas (Dudley) and Starboy (Ken)
5. Amir (Chun Li) and Thomas “The Pad Player” (Ibuki)
7. Mike Zaimont (Makoto) and Sanchez (Alex)
7. Ricky Ortiz (Chun Li) and Chang (Yun)

Marvel vs. Capcom 2: Final Results

1. Sanford “Santhrax” Kelly
2. Justin Wong
3. Michael “Ifc Yipes” Mendoza
4. Bill W
5. Marc “Madbooface” Ansay
5. Soo Chon
7. Jay “Ytwojay” Son
7. Erik “Smooth Viper” Arroyo

Also note that I have applied liberal amounts of php duct tape to fix the problem, so if the site eventually cracks a gasket and breaks, oh well.

Oh look, there’s a StarCraft II LAN petition. Battle.net be damned.

Look, an interview with Terminal Reality Executive Producer Brendan Goss. Obligatory, “Who you gonna call?” joke goes here.

The PS3 will emulate PS2 games, according to these boring patent applications.

It could be bullshit, but Global Gaming Factory X AB has bought The Pirate Bay for 7.8 million dollars. Thank god for Mininova.

Paris, France – 26 May 2009 – Independent developer Monte Cristo today revealed the content details of their genre-defining city-builder — Cities XL. The game, which is playable in both single- and massively persistent multiplayer modes, offers a unique experience for both, as detailed below -

In solo mode, Cities XL will offer -

● 25 maps featuring varying landscapes – from canyons to grassy hills and snowy mountains
● Around 500 buildings based on various architectural styles (European, American …)
● Diverse citizen structure: Four levels of wealth, four main different needs (Services, Environmental, Prices and Traffic) split into many sub-categories (Police and Fire departments, Education, Leisure, Commerce, multiple types of Pollution, Taxes, Cost of Life, Distance to work and more)
● A rich enterprise selection ranging from agriculture to heavy industry, services, tourism…
● A complex, but easy to access, simulation based on 12 resources (electricity, waste management, agriculture, water, fuel, etc.)
● An ambitious traffic system including many type of roads (five different widths, costs, quality and capacity), highways, airports, ports, and much more
● A set of never-before-seen real-time construction tools allowing players to create curved roads, building zones of various shapes, elaborate bridges…
● An avatar studio and Web-based profile pages

“From day one we wanted to make sure that we were going to compete with the most ambitious builders out there in term of content and functionality,“ said Patrick Marchal, studio director. “We wanted the players to first enjoy Cities XL in solo mode, and then convince them to join the Planet Offer, which will open the gates to a more ambitious level of game experience.”

Cities XL offer for the massively persistent Planet mode:

Multiplayer gameplay both in-game and on the web:

● Trade resources with other players to develop economic strategies, specialise your cities, maximise your possibilities in a global economy
● Work cooperatively to build Mega Structures – special buildings that enhance your city aesthetically and economically
● Web-based city management — check your trade contracts, receive alerts, adjust your decisions from any computer in the world

Persistent MMO world:

● Each player receives five slots to build five persistent cities on different Planets
● Contribute to the life and statistics of the Planets (economics, population, pollution…): what you do has an impact on the world

Community features and animations in-game and on the web:

● Visit one another’s cities, see other players’ creations and content, chat with other players
● Create and participate in online events, discover virtual cities and real people

Regular upgrades:

{b} All Buildings, Maps, simulation and functionality upgrades are free with the planet offer

Monthly costs:

● 1 Month = 7€
● 3 Months = 5€/month
● 6 Months = 4.5€/month

“We think that with a price point of 7€ for one month or 5€ per month for 3 months, the Planet offer offers tremendous value for money. There are countless hours of gameplay, fun and sub-objectives in the Planet Mode that players will discover with time,” said Jerome Gastaldi, Monte Cristo’s CEO. “We really intend to continually expand the game, and together with the community keep on enriching it and improving it. “