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We caught a glimpse of the potential machine-exploder that had Fahey so enamored at E3 earlier this year. PowerUp Forever looks to be flOw's take on the never ending , bullet-hell shoot-em ups that do so well in Japanese arcades and on PSN and Xbox Live Arcade.
Right up front at Namco Bandai's pyramid building arcade was this classic: Submarine! Better still Ash had never played it. Watch as he first falls in love and then seconds later loses interest in the game. Now with less North Korean arcade action!
There are lots of arcades in Japan. Hell, there is a book's worth of arcades in Japan. But elsewhere? Hrm. The head of SEGA's AM2 arcade division, Makoto Osaki, calls the arcade market outside of Japan "practically dead" in an interview with game site Kikizo. Here's Osaki:
Not content to document our suckage at just Street Fighter IV, Luke and I decided to prove just how bad we are at saucer games as well. Namco Bandi had a Cena-Flex saucer game set to freeplay at their event. While we didn't win on tape, we did manage to try enough to eventually bag a can of Pringles and four boxes of cookies. FOUR!!! Good thing we weren't actually paying.
Once a year they come to Las Vegas. Not to party. Not to compete. Not even to play Street Fighter.
It's really hard not to be a complete sucker for Metal Slug. Luckily, the seventh game in the series is headed to the Nintendo DS November 18th. Please feel free to never stop making sequels to this game, thanks!
Xbox Live Arcade has him, the WiiWare service has him, and come this Winter the PlayStation Network will finally have a special flavor of Hudson's legendary Bomberman franchise all of their own. Called Bomberman Ultra, the title will include 8-person online multiplayer across 14 different arenas, 4-person local multiplayer, and more than 50 different character costumes to swap around and customise to create your own unique bomberguy.
Really there isn't much to explain here. It's Bomberman, it's online multiplayer, and it's on its way to the PSN this Winter. Roll screenshots!
Posted by Seamus Byrne at 11:14 AM on September 30, 2008
The Street Fighter crowd has their tournament coming up Friday, but what about Tekken? Oh yes, Timezone Australia has you covered. It has announced it will be sending Australians to the Namco Timezone International Tekken 6 Tournament to be held in the Philippines. Registrations for the qualifiers is happening at Timezone's across the country now with seedings for Store Finals based on how often you play. Store Finals: Sunday, 12th October; State Finals: Sunday, 19th October; Nationals: Sunday, 26th October; International Finals: 28th November.
First four places will win Powercards and certificates, with Winner and Runner Up progressing to the State finals. Winner and Runner Up at the State Finals will win flights and accommodation to Sydney for the National Final to be held at George Street as well as JB Hi-Fi gift cards. National title winner gets flights and accommodation to the Philippines to represent Australia at the International Competition, as well as an $800 JB Hi-Fi gift card. Runner Up will get an 8G iPod Nano, and the place of the Winner if they are unable to take their seat at the International Final.
Timezone recommends you check with local stores to find out more, as registration details and places available may vary. Lots more rules and information at the Timezone website. Yoshimitsu FTW!
Full details on the tournament and its structure [Timezone Australia]
Posted by Seamus Byrne at 4:20 PM on September 29, 2008
No not the TV show, but GoodGames Sydney (Level 1, 857 George St (door upstairs is next to KFC)) is calling on all those who think they're ready to throw down at Street Fighter IV to hit the store this Friday for a tournament. They're pretty sure their regulars are the best players in Sydney, so if you think you've got game why not drop by and see if you can take their resident elites? All the details can be found right here where the intercity trash talk is in full effect. The essentials: 7.30pm, Friday 3rd October. $10 entry, $8 online. Winner takes the pot minus costs. Full rules breakdown after the jump. So which character do you think will win the tournament?
SYDNEY: First Official SF4 Tourney Feat. Melbourne Guests [OzHadou]
In a brief look at Mega Man 9, the Wall Street Journal's Jamin Brophy-Warren notes that the game's deliberate flicker and slowdown were added in for reasons other than the retro-feel. They make the game more demanding.
"Why make a game so hard that only the most skilled and determined players can complete it?" asks Brophy-Warren, who then proves the appeal of just such a game. "What makes games such as Bangai-O [Spirits] appealing is that glimmer of joy a player gets from even the smallest achievements. (I only squeaked through the tutorial for Bangai-O, so even mastering the accuracy aspect of the game was an accomplishment for me.)"
The writer talks to Treasure, which developed Bangai-O Spirits, and Capcom's Hironobu Takeshita, and also Jesper Juul, a video game researcher at MIT. ""It's about the feeling of inadequacy," he says. "You get stuck somewhere and feel stupid." That can lead to a sense of triumph if one does eventually succeed."
Hard to Handle [The Wall Street Journal]
For all the things that the People's Republic does not have, it does have an arcade — as we learned yesterday. And at least some very, very North Korean kids have Double Dragon. This pic was snapped by photographer Eric Lafforgue at Songdowon International Children's Camp, and the kids are playing the Micro Genius clone. Nice to see that even in oppressive regimes, some kids still get to kick arse with Billy and Jimmy.
Hit the jump for another pic.
Gouken, known for teaching Ken and Ryu, is making an appearance in Street Fighter IV as a computer-controller challenger. Today, the game's official blog offers details on how to face off against this opponent: Things like do not use any continues, do not lose the first round in any fight and get a certain number of "perfects" depending on what the machine is set to. Easier said than done. But who said this was going to be easy?
「剛拳、見参！」 [SFIV Blog Thanks, TurboIIFC (Lino Martinez II)!]
Taito's Space Invaders went supernova in late 1970s Japan and even caused a national coin shortage! Yokai Attack! co-author Matt Alt was a gaming nut back then, putting an endless stream of quarters into arcade game after arcade game. When he was seven years old, he sat down and composed his first opus space invaders, based on the classic Taito title. Recently found at his grandparents' house, it reads:
The space invaders took off in their spaceship shooting their lasers at some ships. A laser hit their ship; it crashed. The space invaders got out just in time! When the ship blew up, the fire was so bright it looked like a sun! They built a bigger and better ship. It took 10 weeks to build. As time went by, the ship got bigger and bigger! The time came when the space invaders invaded earth! There were no bad things, like fires or stealing. They made some friends and had to get their computers help to take off. They went to ziron home base, 50,0000 miles from earth.
Whew! So glad to know that when the space invaders finally do come, there will be no bad things like fires or stealing.
Nov. 2, 1980 [Alt Japan]
Game site UK:R has an exclusive look at a North Korean arcade, located in the nation's capital, Pyongyang. Yes, a NORTH KOREAN ARCADE. Be sure to click over to UK:R for a rare look at a part of the decidedly closed North Korean most of the world has never seen.
Two hot-looking, upcoming games, two bold art styles, one place you can play them both: San Francisco. This Friday, you'll be able to play Sega's tactical RPG Valkyria Chronicles at a Sony event at the Metreon PlayStation Store, with producer Ryutaro Nonaka in attendance. As for Street Fighter IV, GameSpot are hosting a tournament at CBS Interactive's HQ next Tuesday, with a few thousand bucks cash on offer for the winners. You'll find full details at the links below.
GameSpot hosts Street Fighter Showdown [GameSpot]
Go Hands-on with Valkyria Chronicles this week! [PlayStation.Blog]
Posted by Seamus Byrne at 11:36 AM on September 23, 2008
Word from intrepid Kotaku reader Andrew Brown is that Street Fighter IV is now live upstairs at Galaxy World at the top of Market City in Sydney. Two machines, linked. Andrew says "it looks like they have imported the boards and put them into Tekken 5 arcade cabinets". Move lists are on the cabinets, and it'll set you back $2 a go.
Anyone swinging by that way, it would be great if you could send us a photo! Thanks for the news Andrew!
UPDATE: Some useful comments on where else you can find some SF IV action around the country. So if you're looking for some game, or know where to find it, check in on the comments.
Should you have somehow missed out on the umpteen previous collections of Sonic the Hedgehog material, Sega looks to be readying another "greatest hits" comp, this time focusing on the mascot's Sega Genesis years. Siliconera dug up retail listing for Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, each with ship dates of February 2009.
Those of us with backward compatible PlayStation 3's or in possession of the XBLA re-releases will probably find the value of said collection pretty low, unless it offers something beyond what was provided in last gen's Sonic Mega Collection. Here's to hoping Sega gets on the ball and delivers some non-Genesis era goodies, like much of its arcade heritage which is sadly not legally available for purchase in the West.
Sega Planning An Ultimate Genesis Collection For PS3 / Xbox 360? [Siliconera]
It's not everyday we get a new trip down memory lane. In that sense Mega Man 9 is a very special title (at least for me) as it comes out today on Wii. It isn't only because Mega Man is the first game I can recall playing, but because it's a new adventure in the 8-bit world that my generation started gaming in. I sometimes sit and wonder how weird it's going to be when 3 or 4 years from now we hear someone from the next generation of adult gamers say that the first game they can consciously remember is Super Mario 64 or Metal Gear Solid. What was the first game you remember?
Before I forget, for those of you who haven't made up your mind whether to get the game or not, we have some new images from Mega Man 9 after the jump. You can download the game today on WiiWare for 1000 Wii Points, PS Network on Thursday for $9.99, and Xbox Live on October 1st for 800 MS Points.
Proto Man -- Mega Man's dying brother, originally from Mega Man 3 -- will be playable in Mega Man 9 via DLC that becomes available the week of Monday Oct 6. GamesRadar is reporting the news with two tiny developmental screen shots (jump), illustrating Proto Man's slide and charge attacks -- which Mega Man is not capable of doing in this game.
It sounds like Proto Man will play close to the original guy, too:
Proto Man can deflect most bullets with this shield, but larger blasts will still cause damage and push him back twice as far as Mega Man. Being struck also interrupts his charge shot. All the Rush adaptors change to Proto adaptors as well - Proto Sled, Proto Coil etc.
GamesRadar reports that Proto will cost $1.99/200 Wii points/160 XBLA points.
Mega Man 9 -- Proto Man DLC On the Way [GamesRadar, thanks reader Kevin A.]
So we knew back in July the names of the new bosses for Mega Man 9: Galaxy Man, Concrete Man, Tornado Man, Plug Man and Splash Woman. GamesRadar has another exclusive on this subject: concept art of two of them -- Splash Woman and Plug Man -- plus the weapons you win for defeating both (Laser Trident for the former; "Plug Ball" for the latter. Sounds like a wad of tobacky to me.) Plus they have some more screens. Weekends are made for eye candy (and, once upon a time, Michelob) so, enjoy. Mega Man 9 has three separate release dates: WiiWare on Monday, PlayStation Network on Thursday, and then finally Xbox Live Arcade on Wednesday, Oct. 1.
Mega Man 9 Exclusive Boss Reveal [GamesRadar]
Look, you may not be excited about the announcement of Harley-Davidson: King of the Road, but there are some of us who hold SEGA's previous arcade hog racer, Harley-Davidson & L.A. Riders in very high regard. And hey, it's been ten years, damn it. Sure, we may never see it on these shores, unless some GameWorks locations pick it up, but how can you not be excited about straddling a life-life Harley controller and racing on a 62" screen?
Better yet, Harley-Davidson: King of the Road looks to feature a biker-friendly '70s soundtrack, complete with Steppenwolf and Deep Purple. The whole thing was on display at the Tokyo Amusement show this week. We're desperately hoping they ship them out to Japanese arcades in time for our Tokyo Game Show arrival.
SEGA At the 46th Amusement Machine Show [Game Watch]
While it's only been a few months since we first heard about Capcom's retro Mega Man 9, it feels like we've been waiting forever. Well the wait is nearly over, as the first and second releases of Mega Man 9 hit next week! September 22nd will see the game show up via WiiWare, which should make the Weekly Wii Update a little more exciting than usual. Then on the 25th the game will appear on the PlayStation Network. Finally, after weathering nearly a week and a half of insufferable taunting, Xbox 360 owners will be able to download the Xbox Live Arcade version on October 1st. Looks like it's WiiWare for me!
So now that we've gotten those dates out of the way, show us the boxes!
Mega Man 9 Release Dates! [Capcom Unity]
At this year's Arcade Amusement show in Japan, Taito has resurrected retro title Elevator Action. Dubbed Elevator Action: Death Parade, this isn't a joystick game, but rather, a light-gun arcade game. The cabinet has surround sound and seems to even have elevator doors! The cabinet should hit arcades sometime next year. This cabinet better play elevator music when those doors are shut.
The AM show (JAMMA) Mega Preview Post [Arcade Heroes]
The official Japanese Tekken web site gives us our first, direct-feed look at Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion. The update to Tekken 6, now on display at the 46th Annual AM Show in Tokyo, adds two new characters, Alisa Boskonovich and Lars Alexanderson, the latter of whom will be appearing on a "Top 10 Worst Video Game Haircuts" list on GamesRader within the month. Bloodline Rebellion also tosses arcade gamers a few new bones in the form of new stages, new accessories and balance tweaks. Smallish pics and streaming video of the update await you at the official site.
Hey, Namco Bandai, PlayStation 3 release, please. We're going to start taking this personally soon.
Tekken 6 Bloodline Rebellion [Tekken Official via SDTekken]
