The SEGA Generation
- Thread starter EternalMadness1997
- Start date
June ~ July 2006 - "Summer of 2006"
WHY I THINK BEING ON 3DO HURT TEKKEN LONG-TERM
June, 2006
"Okay so all of us Tekken fans remember 3DO fondly right? The console that debuted our plucky fighting game series that was critically acclaimed yet always living in the shadow of Virtua Fighter? Well, I actually think that being on the 3DO is why Tekken never surpassed VF in sales figures. Tekken 1 & 2 were 3DO exclusives, 3 & TT M2 exclusives, 4 only on M2 & Neo, and 5 as of last year is the only one in the series to finally be on Neptune as well as Neo, with Dark Resurrection being on Pluto. But like, most of the Tekken games so far have like, no more than 3 or 4 million copies sold which is pretty good except VF can get like 6 or 8 million for the really good ones. Though the latest Tekken game, 4 I think, they said only got 1-2 million copies so far. What I'm thinking is that as good as Tekken is, getting both us and critics to give it high scores, I think because it was on 3DO exclusively for so long (all the way til 4), and the 3DO wasn't marketed with the same kind of money that the Saturn or 64 were so I sort of thought maybe the reason VF got so big is because of that? I think Namco screwed themselves over."
"Oh Namco absolutely screwed themselves and Tekken over. Everything you said is basically correct. As kickass awesome the Tekken games are, it didn't matter. They were hot selling 3DO games, but that's just it - many more people had Saturns & Neptunes. Yes Metal Gear Solid survived, but Konami still released Saturn/Neptune ports in Japan alongside the 3DO versions. Namco went full exclusive. While Namco did help me learn to like the 3DO a little, and did help the M2 be such a lovely system to own, I still lambast their decision because in the end it was honestly a horrible mistake on their part. Ultimately, the 3DO never sold as much as the Saturn or Neptune - limiting the amount of exposure Tekken got and basically outweighing the boost the game did for the console's sales."
"Sega & Sony pwnd the fuck out of 3DO, so yeah you're about right."
- Tekken fan forum discussion, 2006
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG GENESIS
June, 2006
"Relive the iconic Sega Genesis debut of Sonic the Hedgehog on the go, exclusively for Sony Pluto portable systems!"
"The entire original Sonic the Hedgehog recreated; playable even while you're away from home! All 7 levels, all special stages, and all bosses fully in line with how they originally were on the Genesis! Enjoy reliving the past or introduce your friends & family to the blue blur and high-speed platforming action for the first time!"
"Patented Genesis Blast Processing fully recreated to it's original glory - enjoy the fastest speeds that both Genesis & Pluto could possibly gift to you!"
"Play in anniversary mode to have spin-dash enabled, enhancing your gameplay experience and allowing for new ways to traverse the 16-bit landscape!"
"New Save feature! Save your progress as you play along so you can always come back to where you were!"
"New Content! Find hidden monitors within each of the levels to unlock special concept art & other secrets!"
- Back cover blurbs for Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS, a Sony Pluto exclusive port of the original Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.
"There's not really a whole lot we can say that isn't, well, already said - it's Sonic 1, but for the Pluto! The additions to gameplay offer you a fun new way to play the classic, and the game honestly runs great on Pluto. It's a very easy high score because of how iconic & classic it as of a game, but at the same time that's kind of unfair because it is a port. It really is at the end of the day, a perfect celebration of the Sonic series and it's rich history. While there's not much to really say that hasn't been said in the decade+ that Sonic 1's been around for, and there is a case to be made that releasing this without the rest of a compilation is kinda 'eh' on Sony's part, at the very least this game was specifically for an 'anniversary' branding and in lead-up to a more substantial release, so I can see why it exists." - Gamespot, excerpt, 2006
"While Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis is on it's surface a wonderful recreation of the 1991 classic, the game has some small details that some can consider to be...unfaithful, to the original. Really the game is just something that isn't really worth releasing or playing in this day and age, it's more fit for a compilation rather than it's own game. Of course, saying that both Sony and Sega before them have/had a knack for releasing Sonic 1 on every single compilation they make/made. It really is just tiring at this point. Yes, the programming is fine, the speed is fine, the spin dash is fine, the saving is fine. But this is still just Sonic 1, and nothing more, nothing less." - IGN, excerpt, 2006. The review was later deleted following backlash the critic faced in the comment section, and replaced with a more positive review/score.
"Sony has recently released a port of Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), and while it's a functional port of the game that accomplishes what it set out to be, many fans are voicing some 'minor' complaints about how the game doesn't feature the original 'SEGA' logo and accompanying jingle as found in most original Sega Genesis games. " - TSSZ, 2006
"The biggest controversy of the release of Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS was the lack of a 'SEGA' jingle at the beginning, instead the game opens with a fading 'SSCEE' logo....not only is it not nearly as iconic, but for a lot of Sonic & classic SEGA fans it was a detraction from the emulation/nostalgic experience. Of course, a ROM Hack of Sonic 1 recreating GENESIS with the jingle included was made not long after the complaints started." - Sonic Retro, 2006-2007
SONIC X-TREME DELUXE
June, 2006
"One of the greatest and most influential Sonic the Hedgehog games of all time, Sonic X-Treme revolutionized gaming when it was released in 1996. Now, on it's 10th Anniversary and the 15th Anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog himself, you get to experience the glorious high-speed 3D action that recreated how video games were made; all on the small yet portable screens of your Sony Pluto devices!"
"Expert Recreation! Every feature of the Sega Saturn classic is just as you remember it!"
"New Features! Play as Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Tiara and even Metal Sonic in the main levels of the game, each with their own unique abilities & challenges!"
"Multiplayer Upgrade! Do more than merely race & battle, as a sizeable amount of game modes have been added to the multiplayer! Enjoy 3D pinball, pool, bobsled races and more with friends & family alike!"
"Connective! Connect online or with other Sony Pluto devices to play with friends or international players via the new and improved multiplayer!"
- Back cover blurbs for Sonic X-Treme Deluxe, a remake/port of Sonic X-Treme for the Sony Pluto
"Sonic X-Treme/Sonic Saturn - the Sonic game that gave Nintendo fans PTSD." - Online comment, 2006
"This is basically a perfect recreation of the epic pwnage that the original '96 release was, except even more pwnage because it's upgraded to fit in 10 years later. More speed, more content, more Sonic action - more everything. It's just plain perfect. Far more care was taking into crafting this package than anything those other guys would be willing to shill out! I mean, you get to play the Sonic game that truly did dethrone Mario while on the go! What more reason do you need to convince you to buy it?" - Shogo Ozawa, 2006
"Sonic X-Treme Deluxe is to Sonic X-Treme what Super Mario 64 DS is to Super Mario 64...quite literally. It's updated to modern graphical standards, features more playable characters, and has additional content not present in the original release. Though at the same time, it really is just the original release again. 10 years ago, this game made history and challenged Nintendo at getting the credit of revolutionizing the industry, giving the Sonic vs Mario debate a dramatically longer lifespan than we ever could've imagined in the process. Now, people will inevitably compare this re-release to 64 DS simply due to that rivalry, but we're going to rate this game separate from anything Nintendo does. And...it's solid. There's not much to say because it's mostly just an extended version of Sonic X-Treme/Sonic Saturn, but there isn't much to complain about. Everything returning is upgraded to modern quality standards, and any flaws in it can be chalked up to the limitations of Pluto systems. While nothing will really beat experiencing the original for the first time back in '96, if you wanna experience the majesty on a portable system this is the port to go with. It's also the first ever port of it, and I will give Sony points for waiting until the actual 10th anniversary." - Gamespot, 2006
SONIC THEMED LIMITED EDITION 15TH ANNIVERSARY PLUTO
June, 2006
"NEW LIMITED EDITION SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 15TH ANNIVERSARY SONY PLUTO DEVICE"
"Sleek glossy blue coat, with translucent Sonic line-art decal!"
"Pre-Order now and receive handheld with Sonic X-Treme Deluxe, Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS & Sonic Rush games bundled!"
- Advertisement blurbs for a special edition Sony Pluto & accompanying Pre-Order blundle, put to market in June of 2006.
BLADE DANCER: LINEAGE OF LIGHT
July, 2006
"Brandish your blade and dance on the edge of destiny!" - back cover blurb for the Sony Pluto exclusive, released in July of 2006
"One of the few role-playing games that employ an item-crafting system that is both easy to use and central to the gameplay, though that's one of its few distinguishing features" - Gamespot, excerpt
TEKKEN: DARK RESSURRECTION
July, 2006
"Tekken: Dark Resurrection is the best Pluto fighter released for the system. It blows its competition right out of the water and everything about the title, from its graphics to its mini-games to its multiplayer options, are exactly what the Pluto Portable needs. " - IGN, 2006. Tekken: Dark Resurrection was released as a Pluto exclusive in July of 2006
"Hopefully now with the 3DO gone, Tekken can finally start getting the recognition it deserves" - Online comment, 2006
June, 2006
"Okay so all of us Tekken fans remember 3DO fondly right? The console that debuted our plucky fighting game series that was critically acclaimed yet always living in the shadow of Virtua Fighter? Well, I actually think that being on the 3DO is why Tekken never surpassed VF in sales figures. Tekken 1 & 2 were 3DO exclusives, 3 & TT M2 exclusives, 4 only on M2 & Neo, and 5 as of last year is the only one in the series to finally be on Neptune as well as Neo, with Dark Resurrection being on Pluto. But like, most of the Tekken games so far have like, no more than 3 or 4 million copies sold which is pretty good except VF can get like 6 or 8 million for the really good ones. Though the latest Tekken game, 4 I think, they said only got 1-2 million copies so far. What I'm thinking is that as good as Tekken is, getting both us and critics to give it high scores, I think because it was on 3DO exclusively for so long (all the way til 4), and the 3DO wasn't marketed with the same kind of money that the Saturn or 64 were so I sort of thought maybe the reason VF got so big is because of that? I think Namco screwed themselves over."
"Oh Namco absolutely screwed themselves and Tekken over. Everything you said is basically correct. As kickass awesome the Tekken games are, it didn't matter. They were hot selling 3DO games, but that's just it - many more people had Saturns & Neptunes. Yes Metal Gear Solid survived, but Konami still released Saturn/Neptune ports in Japan alongside the 3DO versions. Namco went full exclusive. While Namco did help me learn to like the 3DO a little, and did help the M2 be such a lovely system to own, I still lambast their decision because in the end it was honestly a horrible mistake on their part. Ultimately, the 3DO never sold as much as the Saturn or Neptune - limiting the amount of exposure Tekken got and basically outweighing the boost the game did for the console's sales."
"Sega & Sony pwnd the fuck out of 3DO, so yeah you're about right."
- Tekken fan forum discussion, 2006
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG GENESIS
June, 2006
"Relive the iconic Sega Genesis debut of Sonic the Hedgehog on the go, exclusively for Sony Pluto portable systems!"
"The entire original Sonic the Hedgehog recreated; playable even while you're away from home! All 7 levels, all special stages, and all bosses fully in line with how they originally were on the Genesis! Enjoy reliving the past or introduce your friends & family to the blue blur and high-speed platforming action for the first time!"
"Patented Genesis Blast Processing fully recreated to it's original glory - enjoy the fastest speeds that both Genesis & Pluto could possibly gift to you!"
"Play in anniversary mode to have spin-dash enabled, enhancing your gameplay experience and allowing for new ways to traverse the 16-bit landscape!"
"New Save feature! Save your progress as you play along so you can always come back to where you were!"
"New Content! Find hidden monitors within each of the levels to unlock special concept art & other secrets!"
- Back cover blurbs for Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS, a Sony Pluto exclusive port of the original Sonic the Hedgehog for the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.
"There's not really a whole lot we can say that isn't, well, already said - it's Sonic 1, but for the Pluto! The additions to gameplay offer you a fun new way to play the classic, and the game honestly runs great on Pluto. It's a very easy high score because of how iconic & classic it as of a game, but at the same time that's kind of unfair because it is a port. It really is at the end of the day, a perfect celebration of the Sonic series and it's rich history. While there's not much to really say that hasn't been said in the decade+ that Sonic 1's been around for, and there is a case to be made that releasing this without the rest of a compilation is kinda 'eh' on Sony's part, at the very least this game was specifically for an 'anniversary' branding and in lead-up to a more substantial release, so I can see why it exists." - Gamespot, excerpt, 2006
"While Sonic the Hedgehog Genesis is on it's surface a wonderful recreation of the 1991 classic, the game has some small details that some can consider to be...unfaithful, to the original. Really the game is just something that isn't really worth releasing or playing in this day and age, it's more fit for a compilation rather than it's own game. Of course, saying that both Sony and Sega before them have/had a knack for releasing Sonic 1 on every single compilation they make/made. It really is just tiring at this point. Yes, the programming is fine, the speed is fine, the spin dash is fine, the saving is fine. But this is still just Sonic 1, and nothing more, nothing less." - IGN, excerpt, 2006. The review was later deleted following backlash the critic faced in the comment section, and replaced with a more positive review/score.
"Sony has recently released a port of Sonic the Hedgehog (1991), and while it's a functional port of the game that accomplishes what it set out to be, many fans are voicing some 'minor' complaints about how the game doesn't feature the original 'SEGA' logo and accompanying jingle as found in most original Sega Genesis games. " - TSSZ, 2006
"The biggest controversy of the release of Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS was the lack of a 'SEGA' jingle at the beginning, instead the game opens with a fading 'SSCEE' logo....not only is it not nearly as iconic, but for a lot of Sonic & classic SEGA fans it was a detraction from the emulation/nostalgic experience. Of course, a ROM Hack of Sonic 1 recreating GENESIS with the jingle included was made not long after the complaints started." - Sonic Retro, 2006-2007
SONIC X-TREME DELUXE
June, 2006
"One of the greatest and most influential Sonic the Hedgehog games of all time, Sonic X-Treme revolutionized gaming when it was released in 1996. Now, on it's 10th Anniversary and the 15th Anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog himself, you get to experience the glorious high-speed 3D action that recreated how video games were made; all on the small yet portable screens of your Sony Pluto devices!"
"Expert Recreation! Every feature of the Sega Saturn classic is just as you remember it!"
"New Features! Play as Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Tiara and even Metal Sonic in the main levels of the game, each with their own unique abilities & challenges!"
"Multiplayer Upgrade! Do more than merely race & battle, as a sizeable amount of game modes have been added to the multiplayer! Enjoy 3D pinball, pool, bobsled races and more with friends & family alike!"
"Connective! Connect online or with other Sony Pluto devices to play with friends or international players via the new and improved multiplayer!"
- Back cover blurbs for Sonic X-Treme Deluxe, a remake/port of Sonic X-Treme for the Sony Pluto
"Sonic X-Treme/Sonic Saturn - the Sonic game that gave Nintendo fans PTSD." - Online comment, 2006
"This is basically a perfect recreation of the epic pwnage that the original '96 release was, except even more pwnage because it's upgraded to fit in 10 years later. More speed, more content, more Sonic action - more everything. It's just plain perfect. Far more care was taking into crafting this package than anything those other guys would be willing to shill out! I mean, you get to play the Sonic game that truly did dethrone Mario while on the go! What more reason do you need to convince you to buy it?" - Shogo Ozawa, 2006
"Sonic X-Treme Deluxe is to Sonic X-Treme what Super Mario 64 DS is to Super Mario 64...quite literally. It's updated to modern graphical standards, features more playable characters, and has additional content not present in the original release. Though at the same time, it really is just the original release again. 10 years ago, this game made history and challenged Nintendo at getting the credit of revolutionizing the industry, giving the Sonic vs Mario debate a dramatically longer lifespan than we ever could've imagined in the process. Now, people will inevitably compare this re-release to 64 DS simply due to that rivalry, but we're going to rate this game separate from anything Nintendo does. And...it's solid. There's not much to say because it's mostly just an extended version of Sonic X-Treme/Sonic Saturn, but there isn't much to complain about. Everything returning is upgraded to modern quality standards, and any flaws in it can be chalked up to the limitations of Pluto systems. While nothing will really beat experiencing the original for the first time back in '96, if you wanna experience the majesty on a portable system this is the port to go with. It's also the first ever port of it, and I will give Sony points for waiting until the actual 10th anniversary." - Gamespot, 2006
SONIC THEMED LIMITED EDITION 15TH ANNIVERSARY PLUTO
June, 2006
"NEW LIMITED EDITION SONIC THE HEDGEHOG 15TH ANNIVERSARY SONY PLUTO DEVICE"
"Sleek glossy blue coat, with translucent Sonic line-art decal!"
"Pre-Order now and receive handheld with Sonic X-Treme Deluxe, Sonic the Hedgehog GENESIS & Sonic Rush games bundled!"
- Advertisement blurbs for a special edition Sony Pluto & accompanying Pre-Order blundle, put to market in June of 2006.
BLADE DANCER: LINEAGE OF LIGHT
July, 2006
"Brandish your blade and dance on the edge of destiny!" - back cover blurb for the Sony Pluto exclusive, released in July of 2006
"One of the few role-playing games that employ an item-crafting system that is both easy to use and central to the gameplay, though that's one of its few distinguishing features" - Gamespot, excerpt
TEKKEN: DARK RESSURRECTION
July, 2006
"Tekken: Dark Resurrection is the best Pluto fighter released for the system. It blows its competition right out of the water and everything about the title, from its graphics to its mini-games to its multiplayer options, are exactly what the Pluto Portable needs. " - IGN, 2006. Tekken: Dark Resurrection was released as a Pluto exclusive in July of 2006
"Hopefully now with the 3DO gone, Tekken can finally start getting the recognition it deserves" - Online comment, 2006
And that is a good bundle, you could have named this the summer of pluto too or Pluto sun on a way
August ~ September 2006: Two in One
SUPER MONKEY BALL ADVENTURE
August, 2006
"A MONKEY ON A MISSION"
"There's some serious monkey business going on, and Aiai's the monkey to get to the bottom of it in this ballsy new platform adventure. With feuding kingdoms and monstrous Naysayers sucking the joy from Monkey World, Aiai's got his work cut out. But once he's on a roll, there's no stopping this monkey and his unbelievable balls!"
"New ball abilities - magically transform your balls - make them stick, bounce, speed, hover, float, tether, scale walls, glide and become invisible."
"5 unique worlds - explore Jungle Island, Moonhaven, Monkitropolis, Kongri-la and Zootopia, each brought to life in stunning detail."
"Classic Monkey Ball gameplay - revel in legendary Monkey Ball gameplay as Aiai and the gang tackle 50 challenging new ball-balancing puzzles."
"Multiplayer party games - take on your friends in Bounce, Tag and Cannon, 3 outrageous new games that join all your beloved favorites."
- Back cover for Super Monkey Ball Adventure, developed by Traveller's Tales and published by SSCEE for the Sony Neptune & Sony Pluto in August of 2006.
"So for the latest installment in the Super Monkey Ball franchise, Sony decided in their infinite wisdom (or perhaps because all their other team were busy) to give a third party developer, Traveller's Tales, a chance to make the next game in the series. And.....the results are not precisely what the lot of us were waiting for. It pains me to say it, but this game really isn't up to par with the rest of the series. Would I call it the worst game I ever played? No, of course not, there's certainly worse out there. But, comparing this thing to the rest of the series is......yeah. When Super Monkey Ball debuted to the gaming world, it's distinct Japanese style and unique gameplay combining puzzle solving with 3D platforming, the series quickly grew a following both on & off-line just because it came off like a series for once created not to appease key demographics, market forces or focus groups. For once you could forget that Sony was a bloated international conglomerate. But here we are now - the developers Sony turned to for this game have tried to turn the series from a 3D puzzle platformer into a more traditional 3D Adventure format - complete with overworlds and a 'complex' storyline. While this worked for Sonic Adventure & Sonic Adventure 2, the execution was not nearly as good here nor was it as welcome in the first place." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
"Fetch Quests, samey puzzles, a light yet bland storyline - this game is basically when trying something new in hindsight wasn't the best option to go with." -
"The use of magic powers to empower the balls you roll with is not a bad concept for this series, but it's executed poorly here; not put to use in the right way. It would've been better if this was just an ordinary Monkey Ball game with the addition of the elemental powers." -
"When you try to be like Sonic Adventure but fail at it." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt
DIRGE OF CERBERUS: FINAL FANTASY VII
August, 2006
"It's been ten years since Sephiroth threw a meteor past half a dozen planets at Cloud and friends, and yet Final Fantasy VII continues to tell its story. In fact, no other narrative in "RPG sequel" history has planned more spin-offs, revisits, sequels, and tie-ins than Mr. Strife's edgy trek across a battered Midgar -- and fans just can't seem to get enough of it. Though diehards still have some time to wait before they can get their hands on the SOLDIER and Turk-based FF7 prequels for Pluto and mobile phones, the aftermath of "Meteorfall" is getting immediate documentation now. The recently-released direct-to-DVD (and UMD) movie Advent Children picked up two years after the final events of the game, and it succeeded in answering several of the arbitrary questions left hanging from the Saturn days. It didn't answer everything, though, and that's where Square Enix's latest offshoot comes in." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt | Dirge of Cerberus was released for the Sony Neptune in 2006.
"Dirge of Cerberus tells the interesting story of a memorable video game character, but beyond that it's nothing more than a very generic shooter." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
CRYSTALPHOBIA
August, 2006
"Developed by the Italy-based Freefall Interactive, Crystalphobia for the Nintendo DS & Sony Pluto is a very basic puzzle solving game - though it basically is just Tetris with crystals and a plot. The basic gameplay is the same, crystals drop from the sky and you have to line them up in a row of a set number while also matching them in order to make them vanish. On the DS version this is done with the stylus pen, while on Pluto this is with the D-pad. The idea is that you are saving the world from a very vaguely defined invasion from space - but that's about it. The plot is incredibly basic and has no actual characters, you the player are a fully off-screen entity. Honestly this is the type of game you'd think would be on Newgrounds; though games on there tend to be more creative than this. You will occassionally gain power-ups such as a screen-wide explosion or even an auto-coloring that turns all of the current blocks into a single crystal type, but these do little in the way of actually diversifying the gameplay. You do have boss fights in the story mode, but it's really just a slot machine mini-game where you drain their health by matching three. That's it, and all of the bosses are the same crystal tower with different colors. As a whole, this game really is just your average shovelware fair." - IGN, 2006
PAC MAN WORLD RALLY
August, 2006
"It's a Pac-Man kart racer. That's about it." -
"Back in the 1990's, Namco made the grave mistake of making an ass out of themselves by announcing they would not be supporting Saturn games. We don't know if the CEO of Namco at the time had dementia or not, but it's very possible because that decision basically slapped him and the rest of his executive board so hard in the face that their ancestors probably felt it. Nowadays Namco has been bought-out and merged with a Pachinko company known as Sammy, forming Namco-Sammy Holdings, and actually does release games for the Sega/Sony consoles. Hence we have Pac-Man World Rally, a kart racing game starring their iconic mascot character as well as an assortment of other Pac-Man and Namco owned characters. You get to race as Pac-Man, Ms Pac-Man, Jr., Pac-Devil, the ghosts, the three villains from the Pac-Man world games, and a few guest characters from Katamari and Dig Dug to round everything out. However, with that all said it really just your standard franchise kart racer - you pick your character, race along a selection of courses, and combat other racers using items found along the courses. It's not a bad game, it accomplishes everything it sets out to - but if you already have any Mario Kart game you're not really missing out." - Gamespot, 2006 | Pac-Man World Rally was released on PC, Sony Neptune and Nintendo GameCube, with a PAL exclusive Nokia Neo release.
STAR FOX COMMAND
August, 2006
"Instantly fun new adventure on DS. Easy to pick-up and play, learning curve is pretty low. New strategy element adds a new spin. One of the better looking DS games to date. Controls are intuitive and flying Fox’s ship with a stylus feels natural. Star Fox Command is a fun adventure especially for fans and those new to the series, but don’t expect it to be a huge departure from previous Star Fox games." - CNET, 2006 | Abridged
"The flying furry friends return to their roots on the Nintendo DS" - IGN, 2006 | Star Fox Command was released exclusively for the Nintendo DS, being developed by Q-Games and Nintendo EAD
WHAT HAPPENED TO RARE?
August, 2006
"I've noticed that as of late RARE hasn't really been up to much. Are they alright? What do you guys think is the hold up?"
"I think they're developing a lot of titles for the upcoming Wii right now is what I've heard. They might have cancelled a lot of their GameCube projects to move them over the Wii. Which I think is a dumb move and is costing Nintendo a lot of their relevance in Europe but we'll see what the pay-off is pretty soon I guess."
- Nintendo fan forum, 2006
ONE PIECE: THE GRAND ADVENTURE
August, 2006
"Just shy of a year after bringing One Piece Grand Battle to the US, Namco delivers its follow-up, One Piece Grand Adventure, and you have to wonder what the developers spent that year doing. The additions of an adventure mode and support characters to the brawler gameplay model are somewhat notable, but the majority of Grand Adventure has literally been copied verbatim from Grand Battle. Even if you weren't disappointed by the shallow, repetitive nature of last year's model, Grand Adventure gives you little incentive to invest in this year's One Piece." - Gamespot, 2006 | One Piece: The Grand Adventure was released as a Multi-Platform release, a licensed game published by Namco.
OXIDE
August, 2006
"Developed by the rarely heard of Fujiwara games, Oxide is their return to console games after a few years of doing nothing but a bunch of mobile phone games, and while it's not really ground breaking it is a pretty solid game all things considered. Oxide's story is about a billionaire who's corporation finds the Oxide Stone, which allows him to recreate the entire universe as he sees fit. As such it's up to the player character, who is essentially a space cop in a similar vein to the Lanterns of DC fame, to retrieve the gem and restore the universe to the state that it's supposed to be one. Though of course, by the end you do learn that the gem has taken over the man's mind and you're essentially fighting the thing itself rather than the man. The game is a shoot 'em up as well as a beat 'em up in terms of gameplay, with you being able to switch between ranged and melee weapons or even just fighting with your plain ol' fists. There isn't really much else to the game, it really just okay at the end of the day. It's very similar to the Playlogic game Xyanide that came out on roughly the same day, though Oxide does have just a little more flare than that release such as a higher production value when it comes to CGI cutscenes. Albeit, that really isn't saying much. The titles of the two make me wonder, though." - Gamespot, 2006. Oxide was released in Japan as a Sony Neptune exclusive, though was exclusive to the Nokia Neo in all other regions.
CRUNCH
August, 2006
"Developed by Blaine-Lee Interactive (an Australian company founded by a guy named Blaine and another guy named Lee) and published by Activision, Crunch is the story of a anthropomorphic Tiger Quoll who is experimented on and mutated by a mad scientist - turning him into a large muscular powerhouse that is sent out as an ultimate weapon to destroy Billy Bandicoot and his sidekick, Willy Wombat (who are also presumed to be mutant creations of the doctor). You chase after the pair in a series of platforming beat 'em up levels, initially on the side of evil thrashing your way through the innocent furry good guys until you eventually go through your redemption arc after being bested by Billy & Willy, instead fighting the Doctor and his minions. All the way there are various collectibles strewn across the levels which are needed to find for 100% completion, harkening back to the N64 days of collect-a-thons! While the prime of games such as this has largely expired, this game is actually a bit of fresh air after other rather lackluster late era platformers that aren't Mario, Sonic, Jak or Ratchet related. It's very interesting to start the game as a villain character, and the art style embraces the cartoonish nature of the game itself. Overall a decent buy." - Gamespot, 2006 | Crunch was released across all platforms: Sony Neptune, Nintendo GameCube and Nokia Neo.
"This game makes me feel like there's an entire franchise that we somehow missed out on and have no idea about as a result" - Anonymous Forum commenter
IGPX: IMMORTAL GRAND PRIX
September, 2006
"If you can make it past IGPX's terrible presentation and steep learning curve, you just might find an inexplicably satisfying mech-combat racing game." - Gamespot, 2006
"This game is a very difficult to learn combat mech racing game that for some reason had a two episode anime produced for Cartoon Network. I'm not even kidding, that's what this game did. From what I gather, this game isn't really selling all that amazingly well, but yet it has an anime adaptation (is this from a Manga? I never heard of it before) that's airing on Cartoon Network/Toonami right now. It's about mechs, and it's about racing, and it's about mechs fighting each other while racing all with a shonen anime art style. Not the best thing in the world in terms of the game but the anime is enough up my alley to keep my attention. Seriously though what is this."
"Sad thing is I feel like this is gonna go absolutely nowhere and never be talked about again" - Internet Forum, 2006
BOMBERMAN PLUTO
September, 2006
"With all the good going for Bomberman for Pluto, it's tough to not recommend it to everyone, but that $40 price tag seems a tad excessive. After all, you've basically got what could be a $10 download game on the Web combined with an emulated version of a 10+ year old arcade title with a little WiFi (local play only, no Internet) on top." - DailyGame, 2006
"Bomberman arrives on the Pluto with nostalgic gameplay and a new twist for the next generation of wireless, mobile gaming. An ominous black shadow is creeping towards Bomberman's planet, and sudden attacks by a mysterious robot army have brain-washed the inhabitants of surrounding planets, causing mass chaos. Bomberman must embark on a new adventure through the galaxy to restore peace and order. Normal Mode: the latest Bomberman complete with a new story and 100 levels featuring a new Item Stock system allowing for the collection and strategic use of more items. Classic Mode: based on original classic Bomberman featuring over 50 different levels. Multiplayer Battle Mode: up to 4 players can fight for survival in a variety of highly customizable games across 20 different stages via wireless ad hoc mode. Game Sharing: Up to 4 players can battle from 1 UMD game disc. [Konami]" - Metacritic, 2006 | Bomberman Pluto was a Sony Pluto exclusive release
LEGO STAR WARS II: THE ORIGINAL TRILOGY
September, 2006
"One of last year's more pleasant surprises was undoubtedly LEGO Star Wars, the TT Games-developed ode to George Lucas' incredibly popular sci-fi universe. With its unique art style, "pick up and play" mechanics, and the best use of a popular license that we'd seen in a long, long time, it literally came out of nowhere to win critics and consumers over with its charming mix of action and humor. With a resume like that and three movies that could still be "LEGOfied" remaining, a sequel was inevitable. Eighteen months later we have it (and for the first time, on Pluto). Like The Empire Strikes Back which inspired it, LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy improves on its predecessor in just about every way. Its stage design, source material, musical score, visual presentation, and jokes are all of a higher quality than they were before. There are even a number of additions that are new for the series altogether and extra mini-games thrown in just for the heck of it. In other words, The Original Trilogy is almost the perfect sequel." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt
"The gameplay is extremely simple to explain, seeing as how it's a game meant for children - really the greatest appeal of this game and it's predecessor just how adorably fun everything looks when you watch the movies be recreated with Lego pieces. Even though it's ostensibly meant to sell toys, you can tell that the developers at Traveler's Tales still had a lot of fun making this game. They even bothered to include relatively obscure Star Wars characters to be playable after all, something you wouldn't really do if you weren't having a good time making everything." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
"This is literally one of the best things that has come out of Star Wars in recent years. I would rather play these games than watch the Phantom Menace again and I'm not joking about that." - Forum comment, 2006
MEGA MAN ZX
September, 2006
"Mega Man ZX isn't the first Mega Man game for the Nintendo DS, but it's the first to bring the tough-as-nails, side-scrolling action the franchise is best known for. As the first action adventure Mega Man on the dual-screen handheld, Mega Man ZX doesn't force any touch-screen gimmicks into the game, but instead relies on a proven template lifted from the Mega Man Zero series on the Game Boy Advance. The result is a rewarding game for dedicated action-game fans, but also one that can't quite shake the feeling of familiarity." - Gamespot, 2006 | Mega Man ZX was a Capcom release for the Nintendo DS
VALKRIE PROFILE
September, 2006
"Very few people have played the original Valkyrie Profile, but those who have are usually quite vocal about their love of it. Then there are collectors who regularly buy and sell used copies of the game for $100 or more. The good news is that now you can experience Valkyrie Profile without paying some greedy collector a ludicrous price for a beat-up old game. Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is a Sony Pluto port of the original Saturn game, with the only new content being a few prerendered cutscenes. It isn't a perfect port, but most importantly, the unique gameplay and interesting story are just as compelling today as they were six years ago when the game was first released. Be warned, though: The lengthy story sequences and poor explanation of the unintuitive game mechanics mean that this game requires a lot of patience to enjoy, which at times makes it seem like an unfit choice for the portable format." - Gamespot, 2006
"VP and VP:L are both in my opinion timeless Square-Enix classics, they aren't 'basically necessary' to play if you own any of the consoles the games are released on, but they are certainly 'very highly reccomended'. I honestly have put more hours into these games than I have much anything else." - Internet Forum Comment, 2006
IDEI NOBOYUKI TO STEP DOWN AS SONY LEADER: SHOICHIRO IRIMAJRI TO TAKE HIS PLACE
September, 2006
Sony has announced in a recent press release that Idei Nobuyuki, it's Executive Chairman & CEO will be stepping down effective on October 1st of 2006, the start of the next fiscal year, with his replacement being the current President of Sony and former Vice President of Sega Enterprises Shoichiro Irimajiri.
Noboyuki was first selected as President of Sony by Norio Ogha in 1994, and he and Ohga's reorganization of the company shortened the board's members down to 38 - including a controversial selection of 10 outsiders. He later served as co-CEO in 1998,alongside Ohga, later the sole CEO in 1999. In 2000, Noboyuki handed the reigns to the President title to Kunitake Ando - and it was in 2003 that Noboyuki gained the title of chairman following Ohga's retirement. Noboyuki has been seen as one of Sony's key driving forces since the 1990's, and this leaves many people unsure of what direction the company will take with him no longer leading it. Still, many are optimistic about Irimajiri's capabilities, as there are plenty who feel he is well qualified for the leadership position at such a large company despite only serving as it's President for little more than a year.
Shoichiro Irimajiri's first prominent position was at Honda, at which he worked for 20 years, overseeing the introduction of the CBX motorcycle, the design of their F1 racing engines for the RA273 and ultimately achieving the position of managing Honda of America prior to his resignation in 1992 due to a medical issue. It was following his recovery around 1993 that Shoichiro was asked by then-president of Sega Hayao Nakayama to be the Vice President of the company - to which Irimajiri agreed; serving as Vice President of the company until it's acquisition by Sony and merger with Sony Computer Entertainment in March through May of 2001. Irimajri was not one of the Sega of Japan executives to be fired however, and instead found himself as a member of Sony's executive board, later becoming named the company's President following Kunitake Ando's departure in March of 2005.
Irimajiri will be taking the helm of Chairman & CEO of Sony effective October 1st, with it being speculated that Sony veteran Ryoji Chubachi will be taking his President position. He has expressed a desire to see Sony grow as a company in both cultural relevance as well as it's standing in the stock market, and also states that he is confident that a "Sony Renaissance" is on the horizon. While Sony remains dominant in the home video game console market, they have not taken the handheld video game market from market leader Nintendo and in their other industries such as consumer electronics are facing increased competition from rivals such as Samsung, Panasonic, Sharp, Apple and Nokia.
- Business Insider, 2006
"October 1st, 2006 - the day that Sega basically took over Sony from within" - Anonymous forum comment.
MAJOR SONIC ANNOUNCEMENTS AT TGS 2006
September, 2006
"The annual Tokyo Game Show has now yet again come and passed, and with it we now have a lot more information about what the eastern side of gaming is cooking up for us as the next generation of consoles gets ready to start - and while a lot of it was stuff we personally already found out at E3 (though more Japanese focused, of course), and a lot of the console news was obviously (even) more Sony focused, we did get some interesting Sonic the Hedgehog related news. For one, a new trailer of the upcoming Solaris game has arrived shown exclusively to the Japanese audience, and afterwards new footage showcasing the Chao Garden was shown off. We also got confirmation that Sonic will not be the only playable character - implying that we will be getting a return to the Adventure 1 & 2 format. We didn't get any new information on "Wild Fire" but we did learn a massive bombshell - Sony announced at this year's TGS that they will be creating a crossover fighter of their own, revealing it at the Game Show as Sony All-Star Battle. Reportedly developed by the renowned AM2 team, we can assume it will be a very arcadey title. We did get footage of it, though it was merely Sonic fighting with Spike (Ape Escape) in a grid-like test level, showing the game is in extremely early development and has no official trailer yet. There's no doubt that this was made in response to the mind blowing Super Smash Bros. Brawl reveal at E3 back in May, and perhaps to dispel once and for all the persistent rumors that Sonic will be in said game series. The game has no set release date, but it's presence did drum up some attention - reportedly Nintendo's representatives were shaking their heads at the news." - TSSZ, 2006
SONY SMASH BROS. CONFIRMED
September, 2006
"So at the TGS this year Sony dropped a major bombshell - they are planning to basically do their own Super Smash Bros. game, with their characters! Which of course, does mean Sonic. The footage we got was pretty much a preview of a day 1 project, but still! They're actually fucking doing it!"
"About time. I want those Sonic in Smash threads to just go extinct already."
"Guess the fanfare that Brawl got at E3 made them feel challenged, if they're cashing in on it THIS early. I knew they'd do it eventually but didn't think it'd be this soon."
"Well they own a lot of fighting game veteran studios and franchises (Fighting Vipers, Virtua Fighter, beat 'em ups like Streets of Rage, etc)"
"True. That might be why it's come so quick."
"There's some people who are mad about them announcing this instead of Sonic being in Brawl."
"Let them throw their tantrums. Me I'm more excited that DMC 4's been confirmed alongside this. Though I doubt they'll throw third parties in for their first game, I'll be a happy man if Dante ends up being an unlockable character there if this doesn't get cancelled."
- Sonic Retro forums, 2006
OPEN SEASON
September, 2006
"So Sony christens Sony Pictures Animation into the world not with a Sonic the Hedgehog film (oh no, the mainline Sony Pictures is handling that upcoming beast), but instead with....Open Season. A movie about a sheltered bear and a wild deer going on a wacky adventure together out in the woods after the Bear is kicked out of his human home following a bit too many incidents between him and his 'friend'. It's one of those 'I want to get back home but then I find out I'm already there' movies, which as far as kids flicks go is pretty standard - speaking of which, as a whole this movie is basically a very standard 'not Disney' fare. It has more than enough slapstick comedy to keep your kids' attention for most of it's run-time, and it's share of memorable comedy moments to remain in their heads a good while after it's done. It's not a terrible film by any means, but not something I would buy so much as rent." - Rotten Tomatoes, 2006
"Forming Sony Pictures Animation is actually a really good thing for the future in my opinion! Imagine all of the video game adaptations they can do in the future...I imagine only good things for this going forward!" - YouTube comment, 2006
"There was also a video game based on the movie released for the Nintendo DS, Sony Pluto, Nintendo GameCube and Sony Neptune with a Nokia Neo G-X port set for launch as well. Yes a Sony movie having a video game for Nintendo & Nokia consoles. Of course, it's a bunch of licensed games that are really not worth going too crazy about; the differences from the movie's plot are basically negligible and the game was pretty much obviously put together for the kids who really loved the movie; and for cash. From the looks of it, I'm expecting this to become a mini franchise for SPA." - Internet Forum, 2006
COVEN OF DARKNESS
September, 2006
"Developed by the Italy-based Corona Studios and published by Nokia as a Nokia Neo exclusive, Coven of Darkness offers the console something vastly different from the almost stereotypical count of first person shooters that litter the rest of the platform's interactive offerings. Coven of Darkness is a mix of hack an' slash and survival horror, as you play as a single member of a ghost hunter team exploring an abandoned monastery as part of a reality television show (ha), only to find out that this time the place is actually haunted, and they are pursued by various ghosts, ghouls and other paranormal beasts seemingly under the command of a spirit taking the form of the mother superior nun. While the mystery behind all of this certainly is something to figure out, the real concern is just getting out of the place alive; and doing that requires learning how to defend oneself in the traditional demon hunting fashion. For a company's debut title, this title is actually pretty good; it's tense watching your team slowly get widdled down one by one until you are among the last ones standing, and it's also most creative to see how the monsters themselves gradually become more horrifying and grotesque as the game goes on. The combat leaves more to be desired, though it's simplicity does add to the fact it's the player character's first time ever learning how to fight supernatural beasts and also helps the game be more a survival horror as well. Overall a solid debut into the industry that makes me hope for great things going forward from this development team." - Gamespot, 2006
"Corona Studios predicted the Conjuring 2"
"They also predicted that...other thing" - YouTube Comments, 2020
August, 2006
"A MONKEY ON A MISSION"
"There's some serious monkey business going on, and Aiai's the monkey to get to the bottom of it in this ballsy new platform adventure. With feuding kingdoms and monstrous Naysayers sucking the joy from Monkey World, Aiai's got his work cut out. But once he's on a roll, there's no stopping this monkey and his unbelievable balls!"
"New ball abilities - magically transform your balls - make them stick, bounce, speed, hover, float, tether, scale walls, glide and become invisible."
"5 unique worlds - explore Jungle Island, Moonhaven, Monkitropolis, Kongri-la and Zootopia, each brought to life in stunning detail."
"Classic Monkey Ball gameplay - revel in legendary Monkey Ball gameplay as Aiai and the gang tackle 50 challenging new ball-balancing puzzles."
"Multiplayer party games - take on your friends in Bounce, Tag and Cannon, 3 outrageous new games that join all your beloved favorites."
- Back cover for Super Monkey Ball Adventure, developed by Traveller's Tales and published by SSCEE for the Sony Neptune & Sony Pluto in August of 2006.
"So for the latest installment in the Super Monkey Ball franchise, Sony decided in their infinite wisdom (or perhaps because all their other team were busy) to give a third party developer, Traveller's Tales, a chance to make the next game in the series. And.....the results are not precisely what the lot of us were waiting for. It pains me to say it, but this game really isn't up to par with the rest of the series. Would I call it the worst game I ever played? No, of course not, there's certainly worse out there. But, comparing this thing to the rest of the series is......yeah. When Super Monkey Ball debuted to the gaming world, it's distinct Japanese style and unique gameplay combining puzzle solving with 3D platforming, the series quickly grew a following both on & off-line just because it came off like a series for once created not to appease key demographics, market forces or focus groups. For once you could forget that Sony was a bloated international conglomerate. But here we are now - the developers Sony turned to for this game have tried to turn the series from a 3D puzzle platformer into a more traditional 3D Adventure format - complete with overworlds and a 'complex' storyline. While this worked for Sonic Adventure & Sonic Adventure 2, the execution was not nearly as good here nor was it as welcome in the first place." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
"Fetch Quests, samey puzzles, a light yet bland storyline - this game is basically when trying something new in hindsight wasn't the best option to go with." -
"The use of magic powers to empower the balls you roll with is not a bad concept for this series, but it's executed poorly here; not put to use in the right way. It would've been better if this was just an ordinary Monkey Ball game with the addition of the elemental powers." -
"When you try to be like Sonic Adventure but fail at it." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt
DIRGE OF CERBERUS: FINAL FANTASY VII
August, 2006
"It's been ten years since Sephiroth threw a meteor past half a dozen planets at Cloud and friends, and yet Final Fantasy VII continues to tell its story. In fact, no other narrative in "RPG sequel" history has planned more spin-offs, revisits, sequels, and tie-ins than Mr. Strife's edgy trek across a battered Midgar -- and fans just can't seem to get enough of it. Though diehards still have some time to wait before they can get their hands on the SOLDIER and Turk-based FF7 prequels for Pluto and mobile phones, the aftermath of "Meteorfall" is getting immediate documentation now. The recently-released direct-to-DVD (and UMD) movie Advent Children picked up two years after the final events of the game, and it succeeded in answering several of the arbitrary questions left hanging from the Saturn days. It didn't answer everything, though, and that's where Square Enix's latest offshoot comes in." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt | Dirge of Cerberus was released for the Sony Neptune in 2006.
"Dirge of Cerberus tells the interesting story of a memorable video game character, but beyond that it's nothing more than a very generic shooter." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
CRYSTALPHOBIA
August, 2006
"Developed by the Italy-based Freefall Interactive, Crystalphobia for the Nintendo DS & Sony Pluto is a very basic puzzle solving game - though it basically is just Tetris with crystals and a plot. The basic gameplay is the same, crystals drop from the sky and you have to line them up in a row of a set number while also matching them in order to make them vanish. On the DS version this is done with the stylus pen, while on Pluto this is with the D-pad. The idea is that you are saving the world from a very vaguely defined invasion from space - but that's about it. The plot is incredibly basic and has no actual characters, you the player are a fully off-screen entity. Honestly this is the type of game you'd think would be on Newgrounds; though games on there tend to be more creative than this. You will occassionally gain power-ups such as a screen-wide explosion or even an auto-coloring that turns all of the current blocks into a single crystal type, but these do little in the way of actually diversifying the gameplay. You do have boss fights in the story mode, but it's really just a slot machine mini-game where you drain their health by matching three. That's it, and all of the bosses are the same crystal tower with different colors. As a whole, this game really is just your average shovelware fair." - IGN, 2006
PAC MAN WORLD RALLY
August, 2006
"It's a Pac-Man kart racer. That's about it." -
"Back in the 1990's, Namco made the grave mistake of making an ass out of themselves by announcing they would not be supporting Saturn games. We don't know if the CEO of Namco at the time had dementia or not, but it's very possible because that decision basically slapped him and the rest of his executive board so hard in the face that their ancestors probably felt it. Nowadays Namco has been bought-out and merged with a Pachinko company known as Sammy, forming Namco-Sammy Holdings, and actually does release games for the Sega/Sony consoles. Hence we have Pac-Man World Rally, a kart racing game starring their iconic mascot character as well as an assortment of other Pac-Man and Namco owned characters. You get to race as Pac-Man, Ms Pac-Man, Jr., Pac-Devil, the ghosts, the three villains from the Pac-Man world games, and a few guest characters from Katamari and Dig Dug to round everything out. However, with that all said it really just your standard franchise kart racer - you pick your character, race along a selection of courses, and combat other racers using items found along the courses. It's not a bad game, it accomplishes everything it sets out to - but if you already have any Mario Kart game you're not really missing out." - Gamespot, 2006 | Pac-Man World Rally was released on PC, Sony Neptune and Nintendo GameCube, with a PAL exclusive Nokia Neo release.
STAR FOX COMMAND
August, 2006
"Instantly fun new adventure on DS. Easy to pick-up and play, learning curve is pretty low. New strategy element adds a new spin. One of the better looking DS games to date. Controls are intuitive and flying Fox’s ship with a stylus feels natural. Star Fox Command is a fun adventure especially for fans and those new to the series, but don’t expect it to be a huge departure from previous Star Fox games." - CNET, 2006 | Abridged
"The flying furry friends return to their roots on the Nintendo DS" - IGN, 2006 | Star Fox Command was released exclusively for the Nintendo DS, being developed by Q-Games and Nintendo EAD
WHAT HAPPENED TO RARE?
August, 2006
"I've noticed that as of late RARE hasn't really been up to much. Are they alright? What do you guys think is the hold up?"
"I think they're developing a lot of titles for the upcoming Wii right now is what I've heard. They might have cancelled a lot of their GameCube projects to move them over the Wii. Which I think is a dumb move and is costing Nintendo a lot of their relevance in Europe but we'll see what the pay-off is pretty soon I guess."
- Nintendo fan forum, 2006
ONE PIECE: THE GRAND ADVENTURE
August, 2006
"Just shy of a year after bringing One Piece Grand Battle to the US, Namco delivers its follow-up, One Piece Grand Adventure, and you have to wonder what the developers spent that year doing. The additions of an adventure mode and support characters to the brawler gameplay model are somewhat notable, but the majority of Grand Adventure has literally been copied verbatim from Grand Battle. Even if you weren't disappointed by the shallow, repetitive nature of last year's model, Grand Adventure gives you little incentive to invest in this year's One Piece." - Gamespot, 2006 | One Piece: The Grand Adventure was released as a Multi-Platform release, a licensed game published by Namco.
OXIDE
August, 2006
"Developed by the rarely heard of Fujiwara games, Oxide is their return to console games after a few years of doing nothing but a bunch of mobile phone games, and while it's not really ground breaking it is a pretty solid game all things considered. Oxide's story is about a billionaire who's corporation finds the Oxide Stone, which allows him to recreate the entire universe as he sees fit. As such it's up to the player character, who is essentially a space cop in a similar vein to the Lanterns of DC fame, to retrieve the gem and restore the universe to the state that it's supposed to be one. Though of course, by the end you do learn that the gem has taken over the man's mind and you're essentially fighting the thing itself rather than the man. The game is a shoot 'em up as well as a beat 'em up in terms of gameplay, with you being able to switch between ranged and melee weapons or even just fighting with your plain ol' fists. There isn't really much else to the game, it really just okay at the end of the day. It's very similar to the Playlogic game Xyanide that came out on roughly the same day, though Oxide does have just a little more flare than that release such as a higher production value when it comes to CGI cutscenes. Albeit, that really isn't saying much. The titles of the two make me wonder, though." - Gamespot, 2006. Oxide was released in Japan as a Sony Neptune exclusive, though was exclusive to the Nokia Neo in all other regions.
CRUNCH
August, 2006
"Developed by Blaine-Lee Interactive (an Australian company founded by a guy named Blaine and another guy named Lee) and published by Activision, Crunch is the story of a anthropomorphic Tiger Quoll who is experimented on and mutated by a mad scientist - turning him into a large muscular powerhouse that is sent out as an ultimate weapon to destroy Billy Bandicoot and his sidekick, Willy Wombat (who are also presumed to be mutant creations of the doctor). You chase after the pair in a series of platforming beat 'em up levels, initially on the side of evil thrashing your way through the innocent furry good guys until you eventually go through your redemption arc after being bested by Billy & Willy, instead fighting the Doctor and his minions. All the way there are various collectibles strewn across the levels which are needed to find for 100% completion, harkening back to the N64 days of collect-a-thons! While the prime of games such as this has largely expired, this game is actually a bit of fresh air after other rather lackluster late era platformers that aren't Mario, Sonic, Jak or Ratchet related. It's very interesting to start the game as a villain character, and the art style embraces the cartoonish nature of the game itself. Overall a decent buy." - Gamespot, 2006 | Crunch was released across all platforms: Sony Neptune, Nintendo GameCube and Nokia Neo.
"This game makes me feel like there's an entire franchise that we somehow missed out on and have no idea about as a result" - Anonymous Forum commenter
IGPX: IMMORTAL GRAND PRIX
September, 2006
"If you can make it past IGPX's terrible presentation and steep learning curve, you just might find an inexplicably satisfying mech-combat racing game." - Gamespot, 2006
"This game is a very difficult to learn combat mech racing game that for some reason had a two episode anime produced for Cartoon Network. I'm not even kidding, that's what this game did. From what I gather, this game isn't really selling all that amazingly well, but yet it has an anime adaptation (is this from a Manga? I never heard of it before) that's airing on Cartoon Network/Toonami right now. It's about mechs, and it's about racing, and it's about mechs fighting each other while racing all with a shonen anime art style. Not the best thing in the world in terms of the game but the anime is enough up my alley to keep my attention. Seriously though what is this."
"Sad thing is I feel like this is gonna go absolutely nowhere and never be talked about again" - Internet Forum, 2006
BOMBERMAN PLUTO
September, 2006
"With all the good going for Bomberman for Pluto, it's tough to not recommend it to everyone, but that $40 price tag seems a tad excessive. After all, you've basically got what could be a $10 download game on the Web combined with an emulated version of a 10+ year old arcade title with a little WiFi (local play only, no Internet) on top." - DailyGame, 2006
"Bomberman arrives on the Pluto with nostalgic gameplay and a new twist for the next generation of wireless, mobile gaming. An ominous black shadow is creeping towards Bomberman's planet, and sudden attacks by a mysterious robot army have brain-washed the inhabitants of surrounding planets, causing mass chaos. Bomberman must embark on a new adventure through the galaxy to restore peace and order. Normal Mode: the latest Bomberman complete with a new story and 100 levels featuring a new Item Stock system allowing for the collection and strategic use of more items. Classic Mode: based on original classic Bomberman featuring over 50 different levels. Multiplayer Battle Mode: up to 4 players can fight for survival in a variety of highly customizable games across 20 different stages via wireless ad hoc mode. Game Sharing: Up to 4 players can battle from 1 UMD game disc. [Konami]" - Metacritic, 2006 | Bomberman Pluto was a Sony Pluto exclusive release
LEGO STAR WARS II: THE ORIGINAL TRILOGY
September, 2006
"One of last year's more pleasant surprises was undoubtedly LEGO Star Wars, the TT Games-developed ode to George Lucas' incredibly popular sci-fi universe. With its unique art style, "pick up and play" mechanics, and the best use of a popular license that we'd seen in a long, long time, it literally came out of nowhere to win critics and consumers over with its charming mix of action and humor. With a resume like that and three movies that could still be "LEGOfied" remaining, a sequel was inevitable. Eighteen months later we have it (and for the first time, on Pluto). Like The Empire Strikes Back which inspired it, LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy improves on its predecessor in just about every way. Its stage design, source material, musical score, visual presentation, and jokes are all of a higher quality than they were before. There are even a number of additions that are new for the series altogether and extra mini-games thrown in just for the heck of it. In other words, The Original Trilogy is almost the perfect sequel." - IGN, 2006, Excerpt
"The gameplay is extremely simple to explain, seeing as how it's a game meant for children - really the greatest appeal of this game and it's predecessor just how adorably fun everything looks when you watch the movies be recreated with Lego pieces. Even though it's ostensibly meant to sell toys, you can tell that the developers at Traveler's Tales still had a lot of fun making this game. They even bothered to include relatively obscure Star Wars characters to be playable after all, something you wouldn't really do if you weren't having a good time making everything." - Gamespot, 2006, excerpt
"This is literally one of the best things that has come out of Star Wars in recent years. I would rather play these games than watch the Phantom Menace again and I'm not joking about that." - Forum comment, 2006
MEGA MAN ZX
September, 2006
"Mega Man ZX isn't the first Mega Man game for the Nintendo DS, but it's the first to bring the tough-as-nails, side-scrolling action the franchise is best known for. As the first action adventure Mega Man on the dual-screen handheld, Mega Man ZX doesn't force any touch-screen gimmicks into the game, but instead relies on a proven template lifted from the Mega Man Zero series on the Game Boy Advance. The result is a rewarding game for dedicated action-game fans, but also one that can't quite shake the feeling of familiarity." - Gamespot, 2006 | Mega Man ZX was a Capcom release for the Nintendo DS
VALKRIE PROFILE
September, 2006
"Very few people have played the original Valkyrie Profile, but those who have are usually quite vocal about their love of it. Then there are collectors who regularly buy and sell used copies of the game for $100 or more. The good news is that now you can experience Valkyrie Profile without paying some greedy collector a ludicrous price for a beat-up old game. Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth is a Sony Pluto port of the original Saturn game, with the only new content being a few prerendered cutscenes. It isn't a perfect port, but most importantly, the unique gameplay and interesting story are just as compelling today as they were six years ago when the game was first released. Be warned, though: The lengthy story sequences and poor explanation of the unintuitive game mechanics mean that this game requires a lot of patience to enjoy, which at times makes it seem like an unfit choice for the portable format." - Gamespot, 2006
"VP and VP:L are both in my opinion timeless Square-Enix classics, they aren't 'basically necessary' to play if you own any of the consoles the games are released on, but they are certainly 'very highly reccomended'. I honestly have put more hours into these games than I have much anything else." - Internet Forum Comment, 2006
IDEI NOBOYUKI TO STEP DOWN AS SONY LEADER: SHOICHIRO IRIMAJRI TO TAKE HIS PLACE
September, 2006
Sony has announced in a recent press release that Idei Nobuyuki, it's Executive Chairman & CEO will be stepping down effective on October 1st of 2006, the start of the next fiscal year, with his replacement being the current President of Sony and former Vice President of Sega Enterprises Shoichiro Irimajiri.
Noboyuki was first selected as President of Sony by Norio Ogha in 1994, and he and Ohga's reorganization of the company shortened the board's members down to 38 - including a controversial selection of 10 outsiders. He later served as co-CEO in 1998,alongside Ohga, later the sole CEO in 1999. In 2000, Noboyuki handed the reigns to the President title to Kunitake Ando - and it was in 2003 that Noboyuki gained the title of chairman following Ohga's retirement. Noboyuki has been seen as one of Sony's key driving forces since the 1990's, and this leaves many people unsure of what direction the company will take with him no longer leading it. Still, many are optimistic about Irimajiri's capabilities, as there are plenty who feel he is well qualified for the leadership position at such a large company despite only serving as it's President for little more than a year.
Shoichiro Irimajiri's first prominent position was at Honda, at which he worked for 20 years, overseeing the introduction of the CBX motorcycle, the design of their F1 racing engines for the RA273 and ultimately achieving the position of managing Honda of America prior to his resignation in 1992 due to a medical issue. It was following his recovery around 1993 that Shoichiro was asked by then-president of Sega Hayao Nakayama to be the Vice President of the company - to which Irimajiri agreed; serving as Vice President of the company until it's acquisition by Sony and merger with Sony Computer Entertainment in March through May of 2001. Irimajri was not one of the Sega of Japan executives to be fired however, and instead found himself as a member of Sony's executive board, later becoming named the company's President following Kunitake Ando's departure in March of 2005.
Irimajiri will be taking the helm of Chairman & CEO of Sony effective October 1st, with it being speculated that Sony veteran Ryoji Chubachi will be taking his President position. He has expressed a desire to see Sony grow as a company in both cultural relevance as well as it's standing in the stock market, and also states that he is confident that a "Sony Renaissance" is on the horizon. While Sony remains dominant in the home video game console market, they have not taken the handheld video game market from market leader Nintendo and in their other industries such as consumer electronics are facing increased competition from rivals such as Samsung, Panasonic, Sharp, Apple and Nokia.
- Business Insider, 2006
"October 1st, 2006 - the day that Sega basically took over Sony from within" - Anonymous forum comment.
MAJOR SONIC ANNOUNCEMENTS AT TGS 2006
September, 2006
"The annual Tokyo Game Show has now yet again come and passed, and with it we now have a lot more information about what the eastern side of gaming is cooking up for us as the next generation of consoles gets ready to start - and while a lot of it was stuff we personally already found out at E3 (though more Japanese focused, of course), and a lot of the console news was obviously (even) more Sony focused, we did get some interesting Sonic the Hedgehog related news. For one, a new trailer of the upcoming Solaris game has arrived shown exclusively to the Japanese audience, and afterwards new footage showcasing the Chao Garden was shown off. We also got confirmation that Sonic will not be the only playable character - implying that we will be getting a return to the Adventure 1 & 2 format. We didn't get any new information on "Wild Fire" but we did learn a massive bombshell - Sony announced at this year's TGS that they will be creating a crossover fighter of their own, revealing it at the Game Show as Sony All-Star Battle. Reportedly developed by the renowned AM2 team, we can assume it will be a very arcadey title. We did get footage of it, though it was merely Sonic fighting with Spike (Ape Escape) in a grid-like test level, showing the game is in extremely early development and has no official trailer yet. There's no doubt that this was made in response to the mind blowing Super Smash Bros. Brawl reveal at E3 back in May, and perhaps to dispel once and for all the persistent rumors that Sonic will be in said game series. The game has no set release date, but it's presence did drum up some attention - reportedly Nintendo's representatives were shaking their heads at the news." - TSSZ, 2006
SONY SMASH BROS. CONFIRMED
September, 2006
"So at the TGS this year Sony dropped a major bombshell - they are planning to basically do their own Super Smash Bros. game, with their characters! Which of course, does mean Sonic. The footage we got was pretty much a preview of a day 1 project, but still! They're actually fucking doing it!"
"About time. I want those Sonic in Smash threads to just go extinct already."
"Guess the fanfare that Brawl got at E3 made them feel challenged, if they're cashing in on it THIS early. I knew they'd do it eventually but didn't think it'd be this soon."
"Well they own a lot of fighting game veteran studios and franchises (Fighting Vipers, Virtua Fighter, beat 'em ups like Streets of Rage, etc)"
"True. That might be why it's come so quick."
"There's some people who are mad about them announcing this instead of Sonic being in Brawl."
"Let them throw their tantrums. Me I'm more excited that DMC 4's been confirmed alongside this. Though I doubt they'll throw third parties in for their first game, I'll be a happy man if Dante ends up being an unlockable character there if this doesn't get cancelled."
- Sonic Retro forums, 2006
OPEN SEASON
September, 2006
"So Sony christens Sony Pictures Animation into the world not with a Sonic the Hedgehog film (oh no, the mainline Sony Pictures is handling that upcoming beast), but instead with....Open Season. A movie about a sheltered bear and a wild deer going on a wacky adventure together out in the woods after the Bear is kicked out of his human home following a bit too many incidents between him and his 'friend'. It's one of those 'I want to get back home but then I find out I'm already there' movies, which as far as kids flicks go is pretty standard - speaking of which, as a whole this movie is basically a very standard 'not Disney' fare. It has more than enough slapstick comedy to keep your kids' attention for most of it's run-time, and it's share of memorable comedy moments to remain in their heads a good while after it's done. It's not a terrible film by any means, but not something I would buy so much as rent." - Rotten Tomatoes, 2006
"Forming Sony Pictures Animation is actually a really good thing for the future in my opinion! Imagine all of the video game adaptations they can do in the future...I imagine only good things for this going forward!" - YouTube comment, 2006
"There was also a video game based on the movie released for the Nintendo DS, Sony Pluto, Nintendo GameCube and Sony Neptune with a Nokia Neo G-X port set for launch as well. Yes a Sony movie having a video game for Nintendo & Nokia consoles. Of course, it's a bunch of licensed games that are really not worth going too crazy about; the differences from the movie's plot are basically negligible and the game was pretty much obviously put together for the kids who really loved the movie; and for cash. From the looks of it, I'm expecting this to become a mini franchise for SPA." - Internet Forum, 2006
COVEN OF DARKNESS
September, 2006
"Developed by the Italy-based Corona Studios and published by Nokia as a Nokia Neo exclusive, Coven of Darkness offers the console something vastly different from the almost stereotypical count of first person shooters that litter the rest of the platform's interactive offerings. Coven of Darkness is a mix of hack an' slash and survival horror, as you play as a single member of a ghost hunter team exploring an abandoned monastery as part of a reality television show (ha), only to find out that this time the place is actually haunted, and they are pursued by various ghosts, ghouls and other paranormal beasts seemingly under the command of a spirit taking the form of the mother superior nun. While the mystery behind all of this certainly is something to figure out, the real concern is just getting out of the place alive; and doing that requires learning how to defend oneself in the traditional demon hunting fashion. For a company's debut title, this title is actually pretty good; it's tense watching your team slowly get widdled down one by one until you are among the last ones standing, and it's also most creative to see how the monsters themselves gradually become more horrifying and grotesque as the game goes on. The combat leaves more to be desired, though it's simplicity does add to the fact it's the player character's first time ever learning how to fight supernatural beasts and also helps the game be more a survival horror as well. Overall a solid debut into the industry that makes me hope for great things going forward from this development team." - Gamespot, 2006
"Corona Studios predicted the Conjuring 2"
"They also predicted that...other thing" - YouTube Comments, 2020
Omnious
We got a Saturn game would have a USA release ITTL, Deep Fear, Sega own attempt of Resident Evil
You might want to look up the staff that made that game to see if they're still in the game industry. If so, a remake could be done.
They all where internal members of SEGA, so could still be with WOW/Overworks. You could add that game back 1998 update but a remake or sequel could be very nice too
October 2006: The End of an Era, again...
SONY RENOVATES THEIR TOKYO HEADQUARTERS
October, 2006
As of the first of this month, Sony has new leadership in the form of Shoichiro Irimajiri, who is now officially sitting in their Tokyo offices as the incumbent CEO. It seems that with this new leadership comes a touch-up to their Tokyo headquarters though, mainly to the building's main lobby. These renovations include the installation of a circular fountain that features the Sony logo on the base as well as along a 'wall' behind a Sonic statue situated in the center - this wall also features an artificial waterfall calmly pouring down into the fountain. It's after this fountain that the rest of the lobby will remain. Now, this renovation can be considered unorthodox for Japan and is indeed likely to be seen by many as something of a publicity stunt, but does acknowledge the importance of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise to both Sony as well as the gaming industry - ever since Sony acquired Sega in 2001, Sonic has been one of Sony's most profitable intellectual properties and co-opted as essentially their mascot character - replacing the very obscure Toro Inoue character which Sony had previously used in Japan immediately prior to the acquisition. Below are some photographs of the fountain and the centered statue of the hedgehog, which as one can see will be in a standing pose giving all who enter through the front door a cocky smile with an accompanying thumbs up.
- Business Insider, 2006
SCARFACE: THE WORLD IS YOURS
October, 2006
"Although it is formulaic at times and some of the set missions such as protecting a boat with a helicopter gunship while it catches sharks for a restaurant are a bit cheesy, the challenge of making more money, spending it and gaining greater power are as addictive as the white substance that makes its way up Tony's nose. Although it is formulaic at times and some of the set missions such as protecting a boat with a helicopter gunship while it catches sharks for a restaurant are a bit cheesy, the challenge of making more money, spending it and gaining greater power are as addictive as the white substance that makes its way up Tony's nose." - Online review, 2006
"I really love the atmosphere this game has. The music, the voice acting, and the overall feeling is 10/10, but the flaws seriously hurt this game. If they just made the car-handling better and fixed the awkward, sluggish controls, this game would be 10/10 material. Too many problems for a patch to fix, as far as the typical patch. Man, this game could have been golden." - Online review, 2006
"Scarface: The World is Yours is interesting in that instead of being an adaptation of the film it's based on, it's rather both an alternate ending and sequel to it instead; obviously meaning Tony Montana survives the climactic brawl and has to build his empire back from the ground-up all the while plotting an eventual revenge against those who crossed him. While it has it's flaws, I'd be lying if I said the story & gameplay weren't captivating or immersive, as they really do try to make you feel like you're in the 1980's universe of the original film; even the appearances of the characters from the movie who return in the game are surprisingly movie-accurate (though often not the voice acting). As a whole, while there are some chinks in the game's armor, it's a very amazing way to close out this ending gaming generation and usher in the new - a very ambitious title that that has a lot to both tell and do." - Online review, 2006
LICENSED GAMES
October, 2006
"What are the best licensed games that just came out? I'm just wondering what everyone's opinion on this topic is."
"Well, most kids are probably gonna be playing NickToons: Battle for Volcano Island that just came out. The sequel to NickToons Unite, basically. Though no, they don't feature any Avatar: The Last Airbender characters in the game. Maybe next time."
"Older kids would be playing the Family Guy Video Game though. It's almost like actually playing through episodes of the show, the whole voice cast and everything."
"I personally like American Dragon: Rise of the Huntsclan, for the Pluto - based on the SET2 show. It actually adds a bit of lore to the show, developing the origins of the main villain faction."
"As a DC fan, I like Justice League: Heroes, a little. An all-consoles release. It has a lot to be desired but if you like DC it'll give you a quick fix."
- IGN Forum discussion, 2006
MORTAL KOMBAT: ARMEGEDDON
October, 2006
"Armageddon serves as the grand finale to the Mortal Kombat series as we know it, which is to say it is the final game of the current storyline. Whether or not that means after this will be remakes, reboots or nothing has yet to be seen but for now Midway is going all out like it's their version of Godzilla: Final Wars. It brings together virtually every single fighter from all other entries of the series, and adds in the ability to create your own fighter just like in Soul Calibur III; last but not least to mention the new and improved Konquest mode which takes what worked from Deception and adds a lot of elements from Shaolin Monks to make it even better, and of course how could I forget to mention the fun time-wasting minigame Motor Kombat - which is basically Mario Kart but with Mortal Kombat characters. This certainly is a game built for longtime fans of the Mortal Kombat series, though also one built off of the previous 3D entries in the series - it pretty much plays the exact same as Deception, even if that makes sense as they evidently share an engine. While this does mean that many old glitches have been fixed, there are some new ones to be found; not that it's really a reason to not buy the game. One thing that does perhaps count as a con though is the fact that while it's amazing to get pretty much all of the series' epic characters, a lot of these guys really do play the same as each other and perhaps would have been more suited as skins or costumes, because in the current setup a fair half of the whole roster is pretty much a bunch of clones to the other half. Overall it's an ambitious game that's sure to satisfy fans of the series but probably isn't going to be pwning Virtua Fighter." - Shoga Ozawa, 2006.
THE LEGEND OF SPYRO: A NEW BEGINNING
October, 2006
"Working together with Vivendi Universal, Krome Studios has brought us a revival of the Spyro brand with their multi-platform release The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning, a very appropriate title. Though playing through the game compared to the original classic leaves much to be desired. This new fangled reboot has shifted away from the original formula, opting for a much more combat-focused gameplay style as opposed to the original's focus on puzzles. This change in gameplay can no doubt be jarring for many who were accustomed to the playstyle of the original game, and there are certainly some odd choices in certain parts of the game. That all said, the overall presentation is no doubt an improvement from the original trilogy, with top notch voice acting, audio design and graphics. It'll be up to you to decide whether not this reboot is really worth your time though, in my opinion it's a solid 50/50." - Online blog review, 2006
SONY PC GAMES
October, 2006
In the later 1990's and the first few years of the 2000's, Sega despite being a console maker actually had an entire line of games released exclusively on PC's; known appropriately as the 'SEGA PC' brand. Many of these games were actually ports of games also released on consoles either before or after the PC release, but these games existed nevertheless. They also allowed their brands to be used in exclusive PC productions - such as the obscure Sonic's Schoolhouse. The presence of Sega in PC gaming is rumored to be why Microsoft has yet to actively pursue a video game console of their own, despite the immense power they could stand to gain from doing so. When Sony purchased and later absorbed Sega in 2001, many were expecting a complete abandonment of the Sega PC line - though instead Sony has opted to keep the trend going by simply renaming it to 'Sony PC' games; hell, recently their European division acquired Creative Assembly - an exclusively PC developer, giving them control of the popular Total War franchise. The only change this gave to the franchises owned by CA would be that console ports would be exclusive to a single system, not that it matters considering the series is mostly confined to the realm of the home computer.
Many of Sega & Sony's PC games are also compilations of their (mostly Sega's) work as well - ranging from the Sonic & Knuckles Collection to the various Sonic Action Pack & Sega Smash Pack collections. One of the latter series' volumes was even one of the final releases Sega completed prior to their demise. In the Sony era, we've so far had Ratchet & Clank (2003), Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (2003), Sonic Adventure DX (2004), Sonic Heroes (2004), Space Channel 5 (2005) and Shenmue I & II (2006) be ported onto personal computers in addition to the company's PC-exclusive series released (such as the aforementioned Total War series, and their regularly re-released sports titles inherited by Sega such as Football Manager), though Sony has announced plans to create more PC ports over the course of the upcoming console generation; though we'll see if they stick their guns about this.
- Blog post, 2006
"It still bothers me that the Sonic & Knuckles PC Collection changed the soundtracksof some of the levels; it wasn't until I watched Qjimbo's "Michael Jackson's Sonic 3" on YouTube that I learned why they probably changed it." - anonymous forum comment, 2006
ENTER THE HYPERSCAN
October, 2006
"Introducing the hottest new gaming console, fresh on the market! The Mattel Hyperscan gives you the best gaming experience you've experienced in years, combining gaming with trading cards; using the wide variety of purchasable (though sold separately) Hyperscan cards, scan playable characters, weapons, attacks, levels, storylines and more to create a gaming experience you won't find on any other console before or after! The Hyperscan will provide more than enough entertainment for both the kids and the rest of the family, no doubt to become the highlight of many game nights for years to come!" - Gaming magazine review, 2006
"The Hyperscan is literally the biggest waste of money that my grandparents ever made." - Youtube comment, 2006
"Literally the worst video game console I've ever owned. Load times are atrocious, the entire card system is both broken and stupid to begin with, and that's not to mention the system itself barely seems to even work right. Plus I can't count how many of those stupid cards I've lost. Do yourself a favor and just DON'T get this thing. There's literally NO games worth buying this thing for." - Forum post, 2006
"The Nokia G-X E3 lineup is more impressive than anything that's a Hyperscan exclusive." - IGN comment, 2006
"I guess every console generation is gonna have that one thing that everyone collectively forgets about right after it's released. Sixth Gen had Nuon. Seventh Gen's gonna have the Hyperscan." - Forum post, 2006
"The only game people play on it would be the Marvel game that comes packaged in with most. And by play I mean leave on for a few minutes, realize the game and system suck, and then go back to playing Sony, Nintendo or Nokia. This whole thing is better used as either a door-stopper or dust collector." - Blog post excerpt, 2006
SET2'S SONIC ANIME LIED TO ME
October, 2006
"Okay, so SET2 is the product of a joint venture between TimeWarner & Sony of America, and since it's launch last year it has been a moderately successful cable channel - though mostly headed by it being a suppository of Sonic the Hedgehog related shows - having reruns of all the old ones, and also a new one. Not to mention new content such as American Dragon: Jake Long and other anime based on Sony's video game franchises. Though granted some of this content (their re-dub of Sonic X and the 'new' the Sonic anime) tends to air on Kids' WB or Toonami as a second premiere anyway, and they share the Boondocks with Adult Swim. However, a lot of SET2's 'new' anime is actually a bit of a...half-truth. The Sonic Anime for instance, is actually an OVA rather than a full-fledged anime series; evidently the western marketing team didn't know the difference between the two. You see, in Japan the new Sonic 'anime' is pretty much just a 7 episode OVA with a singular story arc and overall serves as a one-and-done sort of deal. Hence why in America, they're repeating the same 7 episodes in reruns. In fact, a lot of SET2's other anime are actually OVA series in Japan; and were aired in the island nation often a full year before they debuted in the west. That all said, Sony has confirmed they are working on video game-based series (full anime series) for the near future, though we're unlikely to hear about them in the west until at least 2008 or 2009." - Blog post, 2006
SIXTH GEN IN REVIEW
October, 2006
"Starting in 1998 and coming to it's close in 2006, the sixth generation of video games has seen a complete transformation of the entire industry. We've seen the resurgence of PC Gaming in the form of Valve and their Steam service during the 2000's, and that's not to mention the end of both SEGA & 3DO as household names. The former because of a buy-out from Sony and the latter due to collapse & rebranding. In 3DO's place we saw Nokia make a surprise entry into the gaming market with a purchase of SNK and the launch of the Nokia Neo, a spiritual successor to the cult classic Neo Geo consoles. On the technical front, the top consoles became more focused on online gaming and multimedia functions than ever before - with the Sony Neptune & Nokia Neo both having DVD viewing & internet connectivity features, though the Nintendo GameCube was a bit more cautious about implementing these features. Speaking of which, in the waning years of the generation Nintendo finally had competition in the handheld gaming market, with Sony launching their Pluto to compete with the DS. While Nintendo remains the market leader in portable gaming, the Game Gear's long awaited sequel is nothing to underestimate. In home consoles, Nintendo remained a weakened empire - competing more with Nokia than with market dominator Sony. Nokia proved more capable of chipping away Nintendo's European market share - as many European developers preferred to work with the Finnish company for their releases. While Nokia largely failed to market themselves well in America, the first 2 Halo games from PIE put them on the map for many gamers. Sony remained eclipsing over both of them however, with the largest launch line-up yet seen in gaming when the Neptune released, introducing hits such as Samba de Amigo, Super Monkey Ball, Shenmue, Space Channel 5, Jet Set Radio, Billy Hatcher, Skies of Arcadia, Phantasy Star Online, Chao and more all in the span of these few years - challenging the House of Mario in the 'most iconic franchises' department. That's not to mention that the Neptune's version of Grand Theft Auto titles tended to be the best selling versions. In the end, the threeway war between Nokia, Nintendo and Sony is only getting started - and based on what we've seen of the upcoming generation, it's gonna be heating up quite a bit in the coming years." - Unknown, c. 2006
October, 2006
As of the first of this month, Sony has new leadership in the form of Shoichiro Irimajiri, who is now officially sitting in their Tokyo offices as the incumbent CEO. It seems that with this new leadership comes a touch-up to their Tokyo headquarters though, mainly to the building's main lobby. These renovations include the installation of a circular fountain that features the Sony logo on the base as well as along a 'wall' behind a Sonic statue situated in the center - this wall also features an artificial waterfall calmly pouring down into the fountain. It's after this fountain that the rest of the lobby will remain. Now, this renovation can be considered unorthodox for Japan and is indeed likely to be seen by many as something of a publicity stunt, but does acknowledge the importance of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise to both Sony as well as the gaming industry - ever since Sony acquired Sega in 2001, Sonic has been one of Sony's most profitable intellectual properties and co-opted as essentially their mascot character - replacing the very obscure Toro Inoue character which Sony had previously used in Japan immediately prior to the acquisition. Below are some photographs of the fountain and the centered statue of the hedgehog, which as one can see will be in a standing pose giving all who enter through the front door a cocky smile with an accompanying thumbs up.
- Business Insider, 2006
SCARFACE: THE WORLD IS YOURS
October, 2006
"Although it is formulaic at times and some of the set missions such as protecting a boat with a helicopter gunship while it catches sharks for a restaurant are a bit cheesy, the challenge of making more money, spending it and gaining greater power are as addictive as the white substance that makes its way up Tony's nose. Although it is formulaic at times and some of the set missions such as protecting a boat with a helicopter gunship while it catches sharks for a restaurant are a bit cheesy, the challenge of making more money, spending it and gaining greater power are as addictive as the white substance that makes its way up Tony's nose." - Online review, 2006
"I really love the atmosphere this game has. The music, the voice acting, and the overall feeling is 10/10, but the flaws seriously hurt this game. If they just made the car-handling better and fixed the awkward, sluggish controls, this game would be 10/10 material. Too many problems for a patch to fix, as far as the typical patch. Man, this game could have been golden." - Online review, 2006
"Scarface: The World is Yours is interesting in that instead of being an adaptation of the film it's based on, it's rather both an alternate ending and sequel to it instead; obviously meaning Tony Montana survives the climactic brawl and has to build his empire back from the ground-up all the while plotting an eventual revenge against those who crossed him. While it has it's flaws, I'd be lying if I said the story & gameplay weren't captivating or immersive, as they really do try to make you feel like you're in the 1980's universe of the original film; even the appearances of the characters from the movie who return in the game are surprisingly movie-accurate (though often not the voice acting). As a whole, while there are some chinks in the game's armor, it's a very amazing way to close out this ending gaming generation and usher in the new - a very ambitious title that that has a lot to both tell and do." - Online review, 2006
LICENSED GAMES
October, 2006
"What are the best licensed games that just came out? I'm just wondering what everyone's opinion on this topic is."
"Well, most kids are probably gonna be playing NickToons: Battle for Volcano Island that just came out. The sequel to NickToons Unite, basically. Though no, they don't feature any Avatar: The Last Airbender characters in the game. Maybe next time."
"Older kids would be playing the Family Guy Video Game though. It's almost like actually playing through episodes of the show, the whole voice cast and everything."
"I personally like American Dragon: Rise of the Huntsclan, for the Pluto - based on the SET2 show. It actually adds a bit of lore to the show, developing the origins of the main villain faction."
"As a DC fan, I like Justice League: Heroes, a little. An all-consoles release. It has a lot to be desired but if you like DC it'll give you a quick fix."
- IGN Forum discussion, 2006
MORTAL KOMBAT: ARMEGEDDON
October, 2006
"Armageddon serves as the grand finale to the Mortal Kombat series as we know it, which is to say it is the final game of the current storyline. Whether or not that means after this will be remakes, reboots or nothing has yet to be seen but for now Midway is going all out like it's their version of Godzilla: Final Wars. It brings together virtually every single fighter from all other entries of the series, and adds in the ability to create your own fighter just like in Soul Calibur III; last but not least to mention the new and improved Konquest mode which takes what worked from Deception and adds a lot of elements from Shaolin Monks to make it even better, and of course how could I forget to mention the fun time-wasting minigame Motor Kombat - which is basically Mario Kart but with Mortal Kombat characters. This certainly is a game built for longtime fans of the Mortal Kombat series, though also one built off of the previous 3D entries in the series - it pretty much plays the exact same as Deception, even if that makes sense as they evidently share an engine. While this does mean that many old glitches have been fixed, there are some new ones to be found; not that it's really a reason to not buy the game. One thing that does perhaps count as a con though is the fact that while it's amazing to get pretty much all of the series' epic characters, a lot of these guys really do play the same as each other and perhaps would have been more suited as skins or costumes, because in the current setup a fair half of the whole roster is pretty much a bunch of clones to the other half. Overall it's an ambitious game that's sure to satisfy fans of the series but probably isn't going to be pwning Virtua Fighter." - Shoga Ozawa, 2006.
THE LEGEND OF SPYRO: A NEW BEGINNING
October, 2006
"Working together with Vivendi Universal, Krome Studios has brought us a revival of the Spyro brand with their multi-platform release The Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning, a very appropriate title. Though playing through the game compared to the original classic leaves much to be desired. This new fangled reboot has shifted away from the original formula, opting for a much more combat-focused gameplay style as opposed to the original's focus on puzzles. This change in gameplay can no doubt be jarring for many who were accustomed to the playstyle of the original game, and there are certainly some odd choices in certain parts of the game. That all said, the overall presentation is no doubt an improvement from the original trilogy, with top notch voice acting, audio design and graphics. It'll be up to you to decide whether not this reboot is really worth your time though, in my opinion it's a solid 50/50." - Online blog review, 2006
SONY PC GAMES
October, 2006
In the later 1990's and the first few years of the 2000's, Sega despite being a console maker actually had an entire line of games released exclusively on PC's; known appropriately as the 'SEGA PC' brand. Many of these games were actually ports of games also released on consoles either before or after the PC release, but these games existed nevertheless. They also allowed their brands to be used in exclusive PC productions - such as the obscure Sonic's Schoolhouse. The presence of Sega in PC gaming is rumored to be why Microsoft has yet to actively pursue a video game console of their own, despite the immense power they could stand to gain from doing so. When Sony purchased and later absorbed Sega in 2001, many were expecting a complete abandonment of the Sega PC line - though instead Sony has opted to keep the trend going by simply renaming it to 'Sony PC' games; hell, recently their European division acquired Creative Assembly - an exclusively PC developer, giving them control of the popular Total War franchise. The only change this gave to the franchises owned by CA would be that console ports would be exclusive to a single system, not that it matters considering the series is mostly confined to the realm of the home computer.
Many of Sega & Sony's PC games are also compilations of their (mostly Sega's) work as well - ranging from the Sonic & Knuckles Collection to the various Sonic Action Pack & Sega Smash Pack collections. One of the latter series' volumes was even one of the final releases Sega completed prior to their demise. In the Sony era, we've so far had Ratchet & Clank (2003), Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (2003), Sonic Adventure DX (2004), Sonic Heroes (2004), Space Channel 5 (2005) and Shenmue I & II (2006) be ported onto personal computers in addition to the company's PC-exclusive series released (such as the aforementioned Total War series, and their regularly re-released sports titles inherited by Sega such as Football Manager), though Sony has announced plans to create more PC ports over the course of the upcoming console generation; though we'll see if they stick their guns about this.
- Blog post, 2006
"It still bothers me that the Sonic & Knuckles PC Collection changed the soundtracksof some of the levels; it wasn't until I watched Qjimbo's "Michael Jackson's Sonic 3" on YouTube that I learned why they probably changed it." - anonymous forum comment, 2006
ENTER THE HYPERSCAN
October, 2006
"Introducing the hottest new gaming console, fresh on the market! The Mattel Hyperscan gives you the best gaming experience you've experienced in years, combining gaming with trading cards; using the wide variety of purchasable (though sold separately) Hyperscan cards, scan playable characters, weapons, attacks, levels, storylines and more to create a gaming experience you won't find on any other console before or after! The Hyperscan will provide more than enough entertainment for both the kids and the rest of the family, no doubt to become the highlight of many game nights for years to come!" - Gaming magazine review, 2006
"The Hyperscan is literally the biggest waste of money that my grandparents ever made." - Youtube comment, 2006
"Literally the worst video game console I've ever owned. Load times are atrocious, the entire card system is both broken and stupid to begin with, and that's not to mention the system itself barely seems to even work right. Plus I can't count how many of those stupid cards I've lost. Do yourself a favor and just DON'T get this thing. There's literally NO games worth buying this thing for." - Forum post, 2006
"The Nokia G-X E3 lineup is more impressive than anything that's a Hyperscan exclusive." - IGN comment, 2006
"I guess every console generation is gonna have that one thing that everyone collectively forgets about right after it's released. Sixth Gen had Nuon. Seventh Gen's gonna have the Hyperscan." - Forum post, 2006
"The only game people play on it would be the Marvel game that comes packaged in with most. And by play I mean leave on for a few minutes, realize the game and system suck, and then go back to playing Sony, Nintendo or Nokia. This whole thing is better used as either a door-stopper or dust collector." - Blog post excerpt, 2006
SET2'S SONIC ANIME LIED TO ME
October, 2006
"Okay, so SET2 is the product of a joint venture between TimeWarner & Sony of America, and since it's launch last year it has been a moderately successful cable channel - though mostly headed by it being a suppository of Sonic the Hedgehog related shows - having reruns of all the old ones, and also a new one. Not to mention new content such as American Dragon: Jake Long and other anime based on Sony's video game franchises. Though granted some of this content (their re-dub of Sonic X and the 'new' the Sonic anime) tends to air on Kids' WB or Toonami as a second premiere anyway, and they share the Boondocks with Adult Swim. However, a lot of SET2's 'new' anime is actually a bit of a...half-truth. The Sonic Anime for instance, is actually an OVA rather than a full-fledged anime series; evidently the western marketing team didn't know the difference between the two. You see, in Japan the new Sonic 'anime' is pretty much just a 7 episode OVA with a singular story arc and overall serves as a one-and-done sort of deal. Hence why in America, they're repeating the same 7 episodes in reruns. In fact, a lot of SET2's other anime are actually OVA series in Japan; and were aired in the island nation often a full year before they debuted in the west. That all said, Sony has confirmed they are working on video game-based series (full anime series) for the near future, though we're unlikely to hear about them in the west until at least 2008 or 2009." - Blog post, 2006
SIXTH GEN IN REVIEW
October, 2006
"Starting in 1998 and coming to it's close in 2006, the sixth generation of video games has seen a complete transformation of the entire industry. We've seen the resurgence of PC Gaming in the form of Valve and their Steam service during the 2000's, and that's not to mention the end of both SEGA & 3DO as household names. The former because of a buy-out from Sony and the latter due to collapse & rebranding. In 3DO's place we saw Nokia make a surprise entry into the gaming market with a purchase of SNK and the launch of the Nokia Neo, a spiritual successor to the cult classic Neo Geo consoles. On the technical front, the top consoles became more focused on online gaming and multimedia functions than ever before - with the Sony Neptune & Nokia Neo both having DVD viewing & internet connectivity features, though the Nintendo GameCube was a bit more cautious about implementing these features. Speaking of which, in the waning years of the generation Nintendo finally had competition in the handheld gaming market, with Sony launching their Pluto to compete with the DS. While Nintendo remains the market leader in portable gaming, the Game Gear's long awaited sequel is nothing to underestimate. In home consoles, Nintendo remained a weakened empire - competing more with Nokia than with market dominator Sony. Nokia proved more capable of chipping away Nintendo's European market share - as many European developers preferred to work with the Finnish company for their releases. While Nokia largely failed to market themselves well in America, the first 2 Halo games from PIE put them on the map for many gamers. Sony remained eclipsing over both of them however, with the largest launch line-up yet seen in gaming when the Neptune released, introducing hits such as Samba de Amigo, Super Monkey Ball, Shenmue, Space Channel 5, Jet Set Radio, Billy Hatcher, Skies of Arcadia, Phantasy Star Online, Chao and more all in the span of these few years - challenging the House of Mario in the 'most iconic franchises' department. That's not to mention that the Neptune's version of Grand Theft Auto titles tended to be the best selling versions. In the end, the threeway war between Nokia, Nintendo and Sony is only getting started - and based on what we've seen of the upcoming generation, it's gonna be heating up quite a bit in the coming years." - Unknown, c. 2006
Shoichiro Irimajiri was a damn genius that got screwed over not his fault stuff, super happy you dug into things a bit to surface him.
Also awesome chart summary, incredibly useful for all of us (me) that forgot the standings
Also awesome chart summary, incredibly useful for all of us (me) that forgot the standings
Irimajiri could have been a powerful leader if he had been at the helm of a healthier company rather than one on the brink of demise.Shoichiro Irimajiri was a damn genius that got screwed over not his fault stuff, super happy you dug into things a bit to surface him.
Also awesome chart summary, incredibly useful for all of us (me) that forgot the standings
He makes a lot more sense to lead Sony than Howard Stringer like in OTL
Thank you very much
Have to wonder how things shift with Halo 3 coming to both power consoles, one can only assume that future Halos will also be multi console releases which hurts the Neo a lot. Not sure if there was anything with more draw for the xbox than that.
Yeah, Nokia is basically dreading the release of Halo 3 at this point. Quite hilariously, Truth's Halo 2 quote "there are those who said this day would never come" could be applied to multiple POVs in this situation.
I imagine that it was a big selling point but having it be full third party may not necessarily be a death sentence. Not entirely sure, but obviously IOTL the 360 ran on more than just Halo, so Nokia's gonna have to do the same.
It did but Halo definitely drove sales because if you wanted to play it you had to have a 360. Without that how strong is the exclusive lineup? Nintendo has Mario and Co and Sony has Sonic and Virtua Fighter.
Yeah, the loss of Halo exclusivity is definitely gonna be an obstacle to Nokia's efforts in North America, where Halo is strongest. Nokia has SNK...and I think I gave them Sly Cooper (which finished it's trilogy). They have some original stuff, but not nearly the same level as Nintendo or Sony. They're pretty much about to enter rough waters without a paddle. They'll have Saints Row...but like with Halo the sequels go third party.
Yeah Nokia need a plan B..on a way Halo was always third party just know they don't have the best version by default it seems
Sly and Saints Row just are not the franchises to be a draw though and SNK is going up against Virtua Fighter plus the multi platform fighting games. They really seem to lack an icon to rally around (they had done so with Halo but now that falls flat).
I think they can still get enough to tread water but not enough to make inroads. Because outside of the hardcore SNK and Sly fans what reason to buy a Nokia? And I doubt there are as many as there are fans of Halo.
Yeah, that's definitely gonna be a problem for them in the coming years. This was inevitable though, as PIE simply has too much money to be gained from a full third party Halo 3 opposed to remaining exclusive; and Nokia just doesn't have the money to make them stay. In fact I will have to wonder what impact this will have on Call of Duty now that Halo is going to be more seriously competing with it right before/right as it made it big.
I would mention Ubisoft, but I doubt Ubisoft would stay strictly exclusive to Nokia. Maybe release their Nokia versions first, but Sony versions would come eventually. Even Namco's gotten over their ego and bent the knee to make more Sega/Sony game releases at this point, so they won't be helping Nokia like they did for 3DO ITTL.
Things will be getting interesting for Nokia in the coming years indeed.
Last edited:
Could see Nokia trying to grab Irrational, Bethesda or Bioware to try to make up for losing Halo. Think those companies could make their 7th gen more exciting.
Unfortunately for them, if I recall correctly, PIE has already acquired Irrational. Though the other two are still on the table.