News/January 2003 Updated: 1/31/2003 Ubi Soft announced today that the GameCube and GameBoy Advance version of Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc will have a connectivity feature, which will allow players to a multiplayer game and other exclusive content, including new maps. Hiroshi Yamauchi will be in the stands when Seattle opens the major league baseball season on March 25 in Tokyo against the Oakland Athletics, said Mariners chairman Howard Lincoln on Thursday. What many people fail to realize is that Nintendo owns the Seattle Mariners and have for the past 10 years. Not only will this game mark Yamauchi's first public appearance since his resignation, but it will also mark the first time ever to a major league baseball game as well as the first time he has ever seen the Mariners. Updated: 1/30/2003 Shares in Japan's Nintendo Co. Ltd. extended losses on Thursday after video game publisher Electronic Arts Inc. cut its forecast for North American software sales for the game maker's flagship GameCube console. The stock, which hit its lowest level in nearly four years on Wednesday, ended down 6.14 percent at 9,480 yen, while the key Nikkei average dipped 0.17 percent. Shares in Nintendo, maker of the hit "Pokemon" video games, have lost 53 percent over the past year. Updated: 1/29/2003 Midway commented today on the rumors and indeed confirmed that their upcoming title "Haven: Call of the King" has been cancelled for Nintendo GameCube and Microsoft Xbox. Midway has yet to announce a reason for the cancellation, though it probably has something to do with the PS2 version's lack of profit. Datel announced a piece of hardware a couple months ago about a console accessory called "Freeloader" that would be used to allow you to play imported games from any region without a mod chip. It was supposed to be released last year, but disappeared. Now, import stores everywhere are confirming that Freeloader will be available for all console NEXT WEEK for as little as $19. Order yours today! Activision announced today it will be reviving it's infamous "Pitfall Harry" franchise and will be debuting it on all next-gen consoles in Fall of 2003. The game will be developed by Edge of Reality. More on the game as details for it are released. Updated: 1/28/2003 GameBrains, the developer of several GBA games, has announced that they are now wokring on a game, formerly code-named "Techtics" for PS2 as well as GameCube. The game, not being called "Magemasters" will supposedly be released this coming Summer. The game is apparently a FPS with a single-player story that spans 30 levels and is et in a fantasy universe. More on the game as details for it are released. EBGames.com is now listing Dragon Ball Z: Budokai for Nintendo GameCube. According to the site, the game will be published by Infogrames and be released in August of 2003. While Infogrames has yet to confirm this rumor, the company did announce last year that they were planning to released mutliple Dragon Ball Z games on multiple systems. More on the situation as it develops. Updated: 1/27/2003 NPD has released the list for the Top 10 best selling games of 2002 today. Only one GameCube game made the list, Super Mario Sunshine, at No. 10. One GBA game also made the list, Super Mario Advance, at No. 4. There was only one Xbox game on the list, Halo, at No. 9. The rest were PS2 games. Smilebit, the leading subsidiary for Sega, revealed in an interview in Dorimag magazine that although it currently is only developing titles for PS2 and Xbox, will soon begin developing for GameCube. They said the reason they have yet to develop for Cube is because they are still researching it and deciding what titles to make for it. Smilebit went on to say that 2003 will be a critical year for them and they will be announcing several never projects soon. The newest issue of the Chicago Tribune is now reporting that the Japanese gaming market make be "permanently downshifted". While the industry is strong, the demographic is quickly changing where younger people are seemingly not putting as much value into games as the generation before it; even those just a few years ago. Adding to that is a rapidly aging population. And you guessed it, this could mean an even harder time for Nintendo in Japan. You can read the article in it's entirety, here. Updated: 1/25/2003 Bloomberg reported today that European regulators are considering giving brand-name owners like Nintendo and Nike more power to punish people who make illegal copies or other unauthorized products of their respective merchandise. The new rights would go into effect across all of the 15 EU countries if approved and allow owners to investigate, stop, and sue fake-goods vendors. As of now pirates mostly get a "slap on the wrist. Fake EMI Group Plc music, Nintendo games, Nike shoes and other forged products cost European companies $2 billion in 2001, according to the commission. Updated: 1/24/2003 Mad Catz announced today that they will be entering a multi-year partnership with Fire International, Ltd., who is known most especially for it's Xploder CD Cheat System. Together, the two will incorporate the Xploder technology into the next GameShark. Mad Catz expects the new GameShark to be available this coming March. Infogrames officially announced today that a port of "V-Rally 3" will be headed to Nintendo GameCube this coming June. The port will however be souped-up with better game dynamics and better special effects. The tracks in the game will also be upgraded. The game is being developed by Eden Studios. Updated: 1/23/2003 Mad Catz Interactive announced today that efective immediately it has acquired the "GameShark" brand away from Interact for $5 million. GameShark is the industry leader in video game enhancement software, which enables players to take full advantage of the secret codes, short cuts, hints and cheats incorporated by video game publishers into their game offerings. In the twelve month period ended December 31, 2002, GameShark generated revenues in excess of $30 million. In an interview with Reuters, Nintendo of Japan President Satoru Iwata removed all doubt and made it clear that Nintendo is indeed already working on GameCube's successor, which is apparently set to be released in 2005. However, because software developers may not be ready in time, the next next-generation console may be pushed into 2006. Satoru Iwata went on to say that they will NOT be going the way of Sega, who said "When we withdraw from the home game console, that's when we withdraw from the video game business." Well said. Finally, Iwata went on to say that in order to boost hardware and software sales, Nintendo will be releasing more games that take advantage of the GCN-GBA Link. Konami announced today a new Frogger game is headed to PS2 and GameCube this coming may. Currently being called "Frogger Beyond", this game will mark the debut of Frogger on Nintendo's GameCube. Updated: 1/22/2003 Variety.com is now reporting that Hollywood producers Warren Zide and Craig Perry (whose films include "Final Destination" and "American Pie") have acquired the rights to make a movie based on Nintendo's "Metroid" game series. The producing duo is currently seeking out writers, directors, and some actors and actresses to fill out the roles of all involved. So obviously, the role of Samus Aran has yet to be revealed. Personally, I wouldn't expect to see the movie hit theatres until 2006 at the earliest. More on the movie as details for it are released. Updated: 1/21/2003 LlamaSoft announced today that it is collaborating with Lionhead Studios to develop an "abstract shooter" now tentatively being called "Unity". Apparently, the game will be similar to the Sega game, "Rez" for PS2. The game is currently slated for a 2005 or 2006 release on GameCube. More on the game as details for it are released. Activision, Inc. announced today that they have signed an exclusive multi-year, multi-property publishing deal with DreamWorks SKG to give them rights to their THREE upcoming computer-animated films, "Sharkslayer", "Madagascar", and "Over the Hedge". This publishing deal is also similar to the deal Activision made with DreamWorks earlier this year for the upcoming sequel to the animated movie, "Shrek". THQ, Inc. announced today that they were announced as the #2 publisher in December of 2002. THQ owes their success to titles such as "WWE SmackDown! Shut Your Mouth" for PS2 and "SpongeBob SquarePants". It should be noted that THQ was ranked #3 publisher overall trailing behind Nintendo and of course Electronic Arts. Congrats to THQ. Capcom revealed today the first ever details for the Mega Man game for Nintendo GameCube. The game, now being called "Mega Man Network Transmission" is being said to have cel-shaded graphics combined with 3D visuals. The game will supposedly be very similar to the Mega Man Battle Network games for GBA. And speaking of which, the game's storyline is said to take place between Mega Man Battle Network 1 & 2. Updated: 1/20/2003 It was revealed today that Peter Moore, who recently resigned as President of Sega of America, has accepted a job as Vice President of Retail Sales and Marketing at Microsoft. It is now believed that Moore left Sega because of their poor performance in the software market. More on the situation as it develops. Namco announced today that it is expecting to sell more than 2 million units of their upcoming title "Soul Calibur 2" within weeks of its launch. Also, Namco announced that SC2 will be released in Japan AND U.S. on the same day, March 27. Updated: 1/18/2003 Nintendo.com is now holding a survey to find out gamer's interests. The questions they ask are very basic: do you own a GBA, do you own a GameCube, how often do you visit Nintendo.com, what is you favorite general site, etc. Make sure you fill it out to help out Nintendo! Updated: 1/17/2003 According to IGNCube, Nintendo has announced that they will begin bundling GameCube games for FREE with the purchase of a Nintendo GameCube. The supposed promotion will start February 9 and will stop sometime in May. By buying a Nintendo GameCube, you have the option of choosing ONE FREE game: Star Fox Adventures, Mario Party 4, Resident Evil 0, or Metroid Prime. I should note that Nintendo has yet to confirm this promotion though. Sega announced today that Sega President Peter Moore has resigned today. As many know, Peter Moore was very important in the launch of the Dreamcast, as well as in the decision to cease production of it. Sega is now reporting that Tetsu Kayama will take Moore's place as President and Chief Operating Officer. And while Sega has yet to announce no official reason for his resignation, rumor ahs it that Moore was offered a job at another company, and apparently he accepted. Neither Sega nor Peter Moore have yet to confirm these rumors. More on the situation as it develops. Nintendo announced today that it will be sponsoring the Burton European Open, which will take place January 18-25 in Livigno, Italy. Nintendo also went on to announce they will also be sponsoring MTV's Winterjam 2003, which takes place March 14 in Davos, Switzerland. Part of Nintendo's sponsorship of the Burton European Open is a huge GameCube obstacle on the Night Shoot Out course, a contest held in the center of Livigno on the night of the 24th. Riders will grind off the edge of the oversized GameCube in hopes of winning €2000 for the best trick. More on the events as details for them are released. Updated: 1/16/2003 Konami announced today the first details and a release date for the new "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" game planned for GameCube. The game will apparently be like the NES/SNES TMNT games, but in 3D. So therefore, the game will be in an action/fighting format. The game is currently scheduled for a tentative October 2003 release. According to IGNCube, 4 out of 5 of the gams Capcom recently announce as exclusive for GameCube may see other consoles. Obviously Resident Evil 4 will be the only one to stay GC-exclusive. The other four games, Dead Phoenix, Killer 7, Product Number 0.3, and Viewtiful Joe may possibly be ported to PS2 and/or Xbox after a brief exclusivity contract with GameCube. More on the situation as it develops. Updated: 1/14/2003 Namco revealed today screens of the console version of the arcade hit, Soul Calibur 2. In the screenshot provided, Namco confirmed the rumor that Nintendo's famous mascot, Link, is indeed a secret playable character in the game. As I previously reported, each console will have a different version of the game with different secret characters(obviously Link can't be seen on a PS2 or an Xbox, its just not ethical). The PS2 version of SC2 will have Heihachi from the Tekken series, and the Xbox version will have the comic book character Spawn. To see screens of Link in Soul Calibur 2, click here. As previously reported back in November, a merger between Square and Enix seemed official. However, Masafumi Miyamoto, the largest shareholder of Squaresoft(40%), recently began complaining about the financial issues that would come out of the deal. Luckily, Enix has offered an incentive that Miyamoto is apparently accepting for now. The Square-Enix merger is supposed to take place in March of this year. Updated: 1/13/2003 Acclaim Entertainment revealed today their plans for games they will release this year, including the resurrected Burnout 2: Point of Impact and a new mysterious racing game entitled "XGRA", a game rumored to be a new sequel to the Extreme-G motorcycle racing series. More on the games as details for them are released. Ubi Soft announced today that it has acquired all of the developing and publishing rights to Nightmare Creatures 3: Angel of Darkness video game which was original handled by Kalisto Entertainment. The game is currently slated for a 2004 release. Midway announced today that "Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance" has sold more than one million copies since November 22 when the game was released. This is excellent news for Midway who recently announced their terrible financial losses. Updated: 1/11/2003 Gotham Games released today a list of celebrities who will be appearing in the upcoming video game based on the hit TV show, "MTV's Celebrity Deathmatch". Celebrities in the game include Lance Bass, Carrot Top, Mills Lane, Marilrn Manson, and many more. The game will be released later this year on all platforms. Updated: 1/10/2003 Nintendo announced today that it will indeed be showing a few games at the World Hobby Fair at the end of the months. The games they will show include Nintendo Puzzle Collection, F-Zero GC, and Mario Party 4 for GameCube. Also, Nintendo and Sega have confirmed that F-Zero GC will indeed be in playable form. They will have a small tournament and hand out a WaveBird GCN controller prize to the top ranked F-Zero player at the show. Sega has yet to announce whether or not Sonic Adventure DX will make an appearance at the show or not. Nintendo announced today that they are planning to move most of itsconsole production to China by the end of the year to cut labor costs. About 90% of GameCube's production has already been moved there since it launched in 2001 anyways. Dengeki magazine recently released the Top 10 selling games in Japan. Mario Party 4 is STILL on the list coming in at No.4(Mario Party 4 has been on the Top 10 for the past 2 months), and Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker comes in at No.7. It should be noted that the No.1 spot belongs to Pokemon Sapphire, and No.2 belongs to Pokemon Ruby. Both games are on the GBA and are reigning supreme in Japan. According to several sources, Nintendo has gone on the record saying Animal Crossing will not be released in Europe. Because Australia usually gets the PAL versions of games as well, they will most likely not get the game either. It should also be noted that Shigeru Miyamoto said that there is no point porting it to Europe because Animal Crossing 2 is already well into development. He also said that AC2 will indeed be online capable, and that European gamers should wait. The Japanese magazine "Arcadia" is now reporting that Capcom will be developing the first official Triforce Arcade game, which is being rumored to be a game based on one of the Gundam series. Arcadia reports the game could be released as early as Q3 2003. Updated: 1/9/2003 Activision announced today that they have extended their license for Marvel comic books through 2009. The extended licenses include Spider-Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Iron Man. Activision then went on to announce that several new Spider-Man games are already in the works. Sega announced today that the original Sonic Adventure for Dreamcast(know being called "Sonic Adventure DX) is indeed headed for GameCube in 2003. And while the game is technically a port, it will feature many additions and changes, like Sonic Adventure 2: Battle for GameCube. SA DX is expected to be released in Japan in Summer 2003, meaning a late 2003 release for the U.S. isn't out of the question. Updated: 1/8/2003 Yu Suzuki, after receiving the Hall of Fame Award yesterday, announced that AM2 will be putting more emphasis on "Virtua Fighter Quest" so it can be released by the end of 2003 in Japan. Suzuki then reiterated what he said a few months ago by saying the game will NOT be a fighting game, but an adventure/RPG. Sega has yet to announce VFQ for the U.S. Rumor has it that Rage Entertainment has begun working on a sequel to it's recently released boxing game, "Rocky" on all consoles. More on the game as details for it are released. Nintendo fo Europe commented today that the Capcom games Dead Phoenix, Viewtiful Joe, P.N. 03, and Killer 7 will in fact NOT be released in Europe in 2003 as previously announced yesterday. Updated: 1/7/2003 Sega announced today that one of their very own, Mr. Yu Suzuki(game designer of games such as "Shenmue" and "Virtua Fighter"), will be presented with the Hall of Fame Award at the next D.I.C.E. Summit. Past Hall of Famers include last year's Will Wright(known for "The Sims") and Shigeru Miyamoto(known for "Mario", "Zelda", and more). Ubi Soft officially confirmed today that Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell will INDEED be coming to GameCube in Spring 2003 in the U.S. Once again, GameCube gets a port of one of Xbox's "exclusives". Nintendo of Europe recently updated its GameCube release lists. Accordint to the list, F-Zero GC and Mario Kart GC are scheduled for a Q4 2003 release...in Europe. The U.S. always gets things a couple months before Europe, which means these two games could be released as early as August in the U.S. More on the games as details for them are released. Reuters is now reporting that Nintendo has sold more than 1.5 million GameCubes and 3 million Gameboy Advances in Europe in 2002. It should be noted that more than 6 million PS2s were sold, and only 1.4 million Xboxes were sold. Reuters is now predicting that Xbox will outsell GameCube by a margin of 2.6 million consoles, compared to GameCube's predicted 2.2 million consoles. Updated: 1/6/2003 Starting today, Burger King is now offering Nintendo-themed toys in their Kids Meals. The Nintendo toys include "Coin Collector Mario Sunshine", "Egg Hunter Yoshi", and "Shield Spin Link". Two different toys will be distributed each week for five weeks. There will also be 10,000 randomly placed golden toys which will be redeemable for a free GameBoy Advance game. Updated: 1/5/2003 Sega.com is now offering downloads of classic Genesis games via Real One Arcade Player. Games offered include Sonic the Hedgehog 1 & 2, Ecco the Dolphin, Phantasy Star II, and others. The point of this offer is to boost sales of Sega's recently released "Sonic Mega Collection" for GameCube. Rumors are floating around the Internet that Nintendo will be holding a press conference in New York next Tuesday. While it ahs been confirmed that there will be a conference, it has yet to be confirmed what the conference will be about. More on the situation as it develops. Updated: 1/4/2003 The ESRB website is now listing "The Sims" for Nintendo GameCube. While Electronic Arts, the game's publisher, has yet to announce the game for GameCube, it should be noted that back in November, the ESRB website revealed THQ's "Red Faction II" for GameCube. It should also be noted that EA recently announced that they are working on a new lineup for GameCube, which means a port of the PC hit "The Sims" is not entirely out of the question. Updated: 1/3/2003 The newest issue of the Japanese magazine "Nihon Keizai Shimbun" is now reporting that Nintendo is planning to release it's first next-gen console Pokemon game BEFORE this coming summer in Japan. Two very important details were reveald in the article. One, the game will sell for approximately the same price as a GBA game. Two, the game will only work when it is linked with one of the new Pokemon GBA games. More on the game as details for it are released. Updated: 1/2/2003 According to new site GameSpot, Michigan's House of Representatives recently voted 98 to 2 in favor of a bill that fines retailers who sell mature games to children. Sale or rental of any "M" and "AO" rated games is cause for a misdemeanor, punishable by a 90-day prison sentence, a $1000 fine, or both. The bill must be approved by the Michigan Senate before it becomes law. More on the situation as it develops. Updated: 1/1/2003 Analyst Richard Doherty is now saying that Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft may all be announcing, if not presenting, new hardware at this year's upcoming E3 2003. Doherty believes that Nintendo may be announcing some sort of portable GameCube. If not this, perhaps Nintendo will begin putting more emphasis on the GCN's portable LCD screen. However, it should be noted that Nintendo has yet to reveal whether or not they will continue production of its official LCD screen after announcing the company's recent financial losses. More on the situation as it develops.