The Negative Edge News Report 10.17.07

Posted by Tommy Coloma on 10.17.2007

Capcom's announcement for another announcement that will probably disappoint, why you should not pre-order from brick and mortar Gamestop/EBGames shops if you want the pre-order goodies, why Sonic doesn't get the recognition he deserves, plus some of the news that I missed during my hiatus.

It's been a little while. Let's just say that I've been busier than usual. I have almost everything squared away, but I'm still playing catch-up. In theory, everything should be back to normal next week. Let's get to the news -


The News As I See It

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Capcom's next big announcement

Word around the campfire is that Capcom has a few big announcements set for this week. The first shocker is that they are working on a new Bionic Commando game for the Xbox 360 and PS3. Bionic Commando on the NES is one of my favorites so I always hoped for a new game in the series. Predictably, Capcom chose to go the 3D route with the upcoming title. This annoys the hell out of me, mostly because I seriously doubt that they will be able to pull off any semblance of the type of bionic arm mechanics seen in the NES version. You just can't get that kind of precision in a 3D game, especially with standard 360 and PS3 controllers. It might be possible on the Wii, but Capcom isn't making the game for that system. It doesn't help that Capcom of Japan isn't even bothering to do the game themselves. I expect this to be like most of the other 2D turned 3D games to come out over the past few years - a big disappointment (Castlevania and Blaster Master for example). And before you send your hate mail, I'll admit that there are a few exceptions, Metroid being the most obvious one. And of course, I hope that I'm proven wrong... A good Bionic Commando game would be pretty sweet.

As for the other announcements, Capcom has screwed with its fans so many times in the past that it's a wonder that anyone could get excited this time around. The last time they said they had a secret to reveal they ended up unveiling the fact that they were publishing Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, Arcana Heart, and MotoGP in Japan. Why the hell are they pimping the fact that they're publishing a fighting game that they had no hand in making? And are Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories and MotoGP really that big in Japan?

Now, according to a post at the Capcom BBS, they will put up a countdown timer (yay!) for Wednesday and there will be other announcements after the media embargo lifts on Thursday or Friday. All I've got to say is that it had better be good this time, or Capcom is risking the loss of all of their credibility (as far as announcements are concerned) if they haven't lost it already. The only announcement that would satisfy me would be one for Street Fighter IV. Chances of that happening? 0%.

Art: Namco X Capcom bionic commando by sergevirusx

Edit: I was wrong! Capcom has announced that STREET FIGHTER IV WILL BE COMING OUT NEXT YEAR!!!

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If you're going to pre-order, do it online!


Next week Gamestop/EBGames will be giving away 8-bit Simon Belmont figurines to those who pre-order Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles. I'll have more on the games in that package next week. This week I have something more important to talk about - the evils associated with pre-ordering from Gamestop and EBGames. Let me clarify that a little - ordering through their online service is pretty good most of the time; it's the brick and mortar shops that you have to watch out for. Let's go back to Portrait of Ruin for the DS. Remember how the pre-order had all that cool stuff like an art book, soundtrack, and stylus? Well, I pre-ordered early because I didn't want to be left out if not a lot of the bonuses were sent out. It turned out that the store that I pre-ordered at only received a few. Instead of giving the items out based on when pre-orders were taken, they distributed them on a first-come first-serve basis. In the end, it didn't matter that I was really early with the preorder. What mattered was whether or not the buyer happened to be around when the delivery guy stopped by on the day of delivery. How screwy is that? While the current pre-order bonus isn't as awesome as the one given out for Portrait of Ruin, it will probably go quickly. So, if you really want that Simon Belmont figurine or if you ever see another pre-order bonus that you know will be very popular, pre-order online to guarantee that you'll get the good stuff. Or, to be extra sure, pre-order over the phone and make sure that the bonus is still available. It might take an extra day for you to receive the goods, but it's better than not getting them at all.

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WarTech: Senko No Ronde is now priced appropriately


A little while ago I talked about how this game would be worth it if it was priced at around $20. Well, those who waited for the inevitable price drop can pick it up this week at Gamestop for the unbelievably low price of $9.99. According to Arcade Renaissance, this deal will last until the 18th. So, if you want a good fighter/shooter for your Xbox 360, pick this game up while you still can!

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Why is everyone forgetting Sonic?


In an interview with Kikizo, the marketing director for Insomniac, the makers of the Ratchet & Clank series, insinuated that the spherical worlds seen in Super Mario Galaxy were inspired by those used in an earlier Ratchet & Clank game -

"There's evidence all around us I think, of certain games that have borrowed from Ratchet and Clank. One that we're even extremely flattered by is Super Mario Galaxy, with their spherical worlds; we did spherical worlds in Going Commando, and Up Your Arsenal. It would be amazing to think that Miyamoto-san thought that was so cool that he wanted to incorporate it into Mario Galaxy. Granted, he's doing it in a different way, but it's still a spherical world, so it's flattering to see those sorts of things."

Honestly, this is something that you'd expect from Sony. Sorry, but spherical worlds were around long before the Ratchet & Clank games even existed. Sonic 3 anyone? Check this out -


Hmmm. Spherical world? Check. Spherical character for good measure? Check! And when did that game come out? 1994. When did the first Ratchet & Clank game come out? 2002. Granted, you can't see the whole world in Sonic 3 like you can in Mario Galaxy, but, if that's something that you want to argue about, take a look at this -


Isn't that spherically awesome? And before you ask - yes, that song is cool. FYI, it's called "Snow Queens." It was one of the songs you would have heard in the unreleased Sonic Xtreme back in '96/'97. You can get the song here. As for the game, you'll have to beg Sega to finish it up and release it. Of course, they probably won't, but you can see what could have been at the Sonic Xtreme Compendium.


The Week In Releases

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I'll have a rundown of all the games that I missed while I was gone (plus some of the stuff I skipped today) next week. There were too many of them!



Ninja Gaiden II (Wii VC)
This is the best Ninja Gaiden game, period. Don't believe me? Make your way to stage 2-2. Was I right?

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Gate of Thunder (Wii VC)
This side-scrolling shooter was good enough to be a pack-in for the TurboDuo in the US. According to the 'pedia, it is "considered to be one of the PC Engine's most well regarded games, with the quality of the game's Red Book CD audio music soundtrack continuing to be highly praised to this day." Considering the fact that the virtual console doesn't have too many side-scrolling shooters, you might want to give this a shot if you're in any way into first-person shooters.

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Every Extend Extra Extreme (Xbox Live Arcade)
If I had a PSP, this is one of the first games I would have picked up... if I didn't know that the game was coming out on Xbox Live Arcade.

Don't know what it's about? Check out the old PC demo here.

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Pump It Up Zero Portable (PSP Japan Import)
If you really need a rhythm game on your PSP, then this should fit the bill. It contains over 100 Pop, Banya, and K-pop songs. Unfortunately for me, I'm more of a J-pop kinda guy...

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Prism (DS)
I saw a demo of this a little while ago and thought that it looked pretty cool. It's one of those puzzle games where you reflect light. You can grab the demo here.

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World Heroes Gorgeous (PS2 Japan Import)
World Heroes was pretty much a blatant rip-off of Street Fighter II. Everyone knows that. Despite the fact that I know about its cheesy origins, I have fond memories of playing the first game when it came out in the arcades. The series got better after each sequel, so if you're gonna judge it, do it based on the last (and arguably best) game that came out. Unfortunately, this is definitely only for fans.

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Planet Terror (DVD)
One of the best movies I've seen all year. But, then again, I like cheesy movies. Horror - Cheese - Action. If you like movies with those three elements, then this is at least worthy of a rent.


It's Time For Something Completely Random

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Snake and the Final Fantasy connection

A simple change in music can make a big difference in a game. See what happens a minute into this video (around the 5:55 mark). You just have to watch the first thirty seconds or so after the music starts up.


I almost spit my drink out when I heard that song. Don't know what's so funny about it? Then take a look at this intro.


To Be Continued...

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That's all I have for this week. It is pitch black but I feel that a grue is looking at me. If I can keep myself from being eaten, I'll be back next week.