Version C Minus?

Virtua Fighter 5 Online for the Xbox360 is out, and while reviews have been mostly positive, if not totally outstanding (1Up gave it a 10), this latest version of Sega’s flagship fighter still isn’t as perfect as it should be. Word is that in terms of customization, VF5 360 falls short of the arcade game. While in the arcade you can switch various tops and bottoms between characters’ costume types, that doesn’t seem to be possible with the home version. This ability was one of Version C’s big updates, so it’s pretty odd that it was omitted from the home game. That said, the Xbox360 version still has supposedly 75% more items than the PS3 game.

I also note with disdain that nice add-ons like the customizable Character Intro vids in Version C aren’t in the Xbox360 game either. Okay, these are all just extras- the game is still as solid a fighter as ever, and the online play adds longevity and playability in spades. Still, little stuff and fan service make a game all the more enjoyable, and these little details missing without a doubt take away from the coolness. Oh well. Let’s hope DLC comes in soon… hopefully good stuff will appear long before the Asian and Japanese versions come in December.

MGS4 delayed to 2nd Quarter 2008

Argh. Oh well, we all already knew that the Last Adventure for Solid Snake wouldn’t make it this year, but now it won’t make ‘early 2008’ either. Konami has delayed the release of Kojima’s opus to ensure that the end product is all the more perfect… gah. Oh well, what can you do? Better break out the gazillion-or-so trailers and just keep dreaming, people. Whatever. Anyways, here’s the press release, so read and weep.

METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS Release Update October 31, 2007

KONAMI announced today that “METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS”, the latest in the METAL GEAR series, is scheduled to be released in the second quarter of 2008.

KONAMI had initially intended to release “METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS” this winter and has been working on the production of the title. KONAMI has decided to delay the title’s release in order to make further improvements to the quality of the game and provide even greater enjoyment for more customers worldwide.

KONAMI will continue its efforts to make “METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS” meet everyone’s expectations.

Further information regarding the release date will be announced as soon as possible.
Title: “METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS”
Expected Release Date: the second quarter of 2008
Genre: Action
Platform: PlayStation 3

Resident Evil CG Movie in the Works

While the less-than-faithful live-action film adaptations of the Resident Evil franchise has apparently run its course, gamers who haven’t been totally satisfied by the adventures of Milla Jovovich on the silver screen can look forward to perhaps a more straightforward interpretation of the survival-horror games in the future. Capcom today announced a partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan to produce a CG Resident Evil (or Biohazard) movie.

Entitled Biohazard: Degeneration, the movie will supposedly use ‘groundbreaking’ visual effects and a brand-new storyline. No word yet if the movie will see release in theaters or will get the Advent Children treatment (straight to video). All I can say is… perhaps this ensures a release of the next RE game, Resident Evil 5, on the PS3?

More on this as it happens.

Altair’s Ready to Pounce

Assassin’s Creed, the much-anticipated free-roaming stealth/action-adventure set in the Crusades, has gone gold. The game is set for release on November 13 for Xbox360 and PS3. Players take the role of Altair, a master assassin tasked with eliminating various key figures in the ensuing war between the Crusaders and the Moors.
I’ve been waiting for this game for ages- it looks awesome so if the reviews look good, I’ll probably pick this up. November looks like a great time for action-adventure gamers.

Virtua Fighter 5 for the Xbox360 is OUT…

… apparently in Australia. The present version is apparently playable on US and PAL consoles, but not on Asian Xbox360s. The bulk of US gamers get the game early next week, while us Asians have to wait till the Japanese version in early December. Still, by then maybe there’ll be DLC and cool new items to find. On the other hand, I think that the new Intro Scenes added to Version C of the arcade game didn’t make it into the Xbox360 game, which sucks. Still, I’ll be looking for gameplay videos online once more players get the game- we’ll see if the Xbox360 game is worth getting.

Hot Game

I got myself several games today, the most ‘newsy’ of which would be Avatar the Last Airbender: The Burning Earth for the PS2. I kinda-sorta-probably liked the first game, but only ’cause I’m an Avatar fan and at the time I was really hurting for my Nicktoon fix. Anyways, it will be nice to see what this bigger, better game in the series has to offer… I mean, getting to play a Firebender via Zuko or Iroh should be cool (heh), and Toph should ROCK in gameplay. Ouch, painful stuff. Anyways, I’ll post vids and info once I practice some bending.

Lair

If you haven’t already, better get on with downloading The Fighter’s Stronghold DLC for Oblivion on the Xbox360. As far as I know, it will only be free for a limited time. It’s a pretty tiny download, so it shouldn’t be any problem for anyone with a decent connection.

The DLC gives you a pretty large castle located west of Chorrol, past an abandoned mine (I think). As you approach the gates you’ll find the place being besieged by a band of marauders. Clear the attackers and you’ll receive Lord Kelvin’s Will, which basically bequeaths to you the castle… along with all its debts. The place has an interesting back-story, and it will be a bit of a challenge to restore the place to its former glory (it’ll take quite a bit of cash), but it should be pretty cool to have your own gallery of stuffed creatures and other goodies any warlord should have. It certainly looks awesome… but I still prefer my house in Anvil. Heh.

The Wait Begins

Better dust off that copy of Streetfighter III: Third Strike or whatever else SF that floats your boat… we won’t be seeing Streetfighter IV anytime soon. According to Gamespot’s recent article about the Capcom announcement, the confirmation of SF4’s development also came with a note- development has only just begun, so the actual finished game may be up to a YEAR away from release.

Oh well. At least it’s coming. Better turn to other games then. But we’ll be watching, Capcom. And waiting.

Prepping for the Next Fight

Information on Streetfighter IV is scarce at this point, but I expect that will change shortly as the embargo on information from the Capcom event will be lifted later this week. In the meantime, I just want to share my thoughts on this upcoming momentous event in fighting games.

The trailer looks cool but it leaves so many questions open. Is the game going to be in 3-D? Capcom has never been a strong contender in the 3-D fighting game arena, and to be honest, it’s pretty late in the game for them to try given that Sega, Namco and Tecmo have gotten that down to a science or an art after all these years. Yeah, the 3-D Streetfighters were playable, but they never really did much aside from giving a novelty side to the basic SF fighting game formula. Graphically, as well, I don’t think they can just jump in and challenge the 3-D kings. Streetfighter looks to have a less-realistic art style till Doomsday- which is fine by me.

I am hoping perhaps the game will have 2-D, albeit much deeper or updated, gameplay still grounded to the classic SF system. The graphics will hopefully be in 3-D, or 2.5 D, perhaps even cel-shaded 3-D graphics for depth and a fresh, new look. Animations for throws or super moves/combos may look awesome with changing camera angles, or perhaps in replays we can appreciate the carnage from various views.

I hope they bring back the Third Strike crew, as well as pertinent classic fighters. I hope that M. Bison remains dead- Shadaloo has had dozens of games to wage it’s crime wave. Is Gill and his cult gone? Will there be a new villain to fight? Aside from the familiar, I expect new faces and fighting styles to enter the arena. But bottom-line, I just want my Ibuki and Makoto back, Capcom, for the love of all that is holy.

Will it come out on PS3, Xbox360, Wii or what? I expect that the higher-end systems can handle anything an arcade can put out, so an arcade-perfect/better-than-perfect port should be forthcoming. I even doubt if this will come out in the arcade at all… it may just debut on home systems directly.

Let’s hope that Capcom doesn’t take too much time to bring IV out. In the meantime though, we have Virtua Fighter 5 for the Xbox360 with online play coming out in less than a month, the arcade version of Tekken 6 out before 2007 ends, Soulcalibur IV in early 2008 and the home versions of Tekken 6 soon after.  Fighting game fans are going to have their hands busy soon. Let’s hope Streetfighter IV falls into our bloody mitts soon enough.

STREETFIGHTER IV!!!

Perhaps the only fighting game sequel with a FOUR at the end that isn’t Soulcalibur IV that can make me squeal with delight, Streetfighter IV has FINALLY made it’s appearance, albeit in just a short teaser video posted at gametrailers just now. Capcom has made it official, after years of speculation. I mean, it’s about FRICKIN’ time. The last formal SF sequel, the original Streetfighter 3, came out in 1997, for cripe’s sake.

Consisting of just a short but sweetly violent, stylized and kinetic cinematic fight between eternal rivals Ryu and Ken, the teaser reveals little of what Capcom has in store for us in their long, long, long, long-awaited sequel. We can only speculate- the video was in 3-D, so apparently Capcom may be bidding farewell to 2-D sprites for good now; if this is so, hopefully the game will still kick arse despite SF’s tragic past with 3-D (Streetfighter EX3, anyone?). There has been word that despite the 3-D movements of the trailer, the game will be a 2-D game… perhaps 2-D with 3-D graphics?

Nothing known as yet about the roster aside from the Shotokan brothers; I am hoping for at the very least the return of everyone from SFIII, and everyone else who matters. I just want my Ibuki back.

Darn, Fighting Games just got a whole lot more awesome again. STREETFIGHTER IS BACK, BABY!!! Check out the teaser here.