NINTENDO 64 4°. UPDATE d INSIDE ag YOUR GUIDE TO: Nintendo 60, 300 April, 1996 $4.99/$6.50 Canada 04 0709927373710 | ©1996 Capcom Co., Ltd. AOL @keyword: МОЖ А www-nintendo.com Ф 4 t T KIDS TO ADULTS d EZE Mario’s back in his biggest adventure yet. Four years in the birthing, and now this bambino AIS comes kicking and screaming into the world of Morphmation graphics. A Nintendo brainchild that allows the characters and back- grounds to ripple, rubberize and react Like nothing you've ever seen Ccept maybe that nasty gelatin salad your mom puts out, for company). But there's more than eye-popping Egg fights, screaming babies, Do not adjust your vicious attacks—it's like television. These graphics visuals to drool over. There's over day care from hell. are supposed to be wavy. РЕЦ йы This:baby's outta control. 60 levels packed with all-new surprises. Huge expanding ‘bosses. And Yoshi—a cold-blooded. baby sitter who spits fire and Launches е s Little sucker doesn't Kicking, shrieking, his butt.,He even just scroll left to right. crying, tantrums...and He goes all over the place that's just the guys who into a heli copter... (апа we don't mean Number Two). bought new systems. try that with your average Lizard. if that doesn't pacify you, there are over 130 different types of enemies. sors, So, you may wanna put on a fresh diaper. S SUPER NINTENDO If the suspense doesn’t kill you, something else will. Mission Briefing: Problem reported at Bio-Weapons Research facility in Raccoon Hills. No communication with Science Staff in six weeks. No response jon, ће ©САРСОМ CO., LTD. 1996 CAPCOM U.S.A., INC. 1996. АЦ RI CAPCOM is a registered trademark of CAPCOM CO... LTD. PlaySt Your team should not be misled by the neo! and orderly appearance of this isolated mansion A major corporation's been conducting questionable research here. You'll soon discover thë- results of some very, very careless expériiienls hyper-realistic 3D lighting and an ominous CD ty soundtrack and special effects, to unique action Fight or flight? When you're under-powered and оп the run, split-second decision making abilities are key. Discover and arm yourself with anything you find: knives, pistols, shotguns, flome-throwers and more. This twisted 32-bit polygon-based blood-bath isn’t limited to gleaming - dining rooms ond endless. polished hallways. Answers ore found in darkest corners of the estate cemetery, crumbling guest houses, and a mysterious tower. from initial reconnaissance team. No backup. You are on your own. CAPCOM М PlayStation logo and ће PS logo are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Feel like you may need a little emotional support? Try млл сарсот сот publisher. Steve Harris editorial director. ое Funk editor in chief. Ed Semrad managing editor. associate editors. Mark LeFebvre Mike Desmond Scott Parus third-party liaison. John Stockhausen news editor. "Todd Mowatt assistant news editor. Nelson Taruc art directors. Michael Stassus Jason Hinman layout and design. Paul Ojed Tim Da Ken Badzi assistant editors. Howard Grossman Sushi-X è Mike Vallas ‘Terry Minnich e Al Manuel Dindo Perez • John Gurka Jason Streetz e Mark Hain Dave Ruchala online editors. Jason Morgan e Joe Fielder managing copy editor. Jennifer Whitesides senior copy editor. Jo-El M. Damen copy editors. Jim Caswell • Dan Peluso foreign correspondents. Stuart Levy David Rider president. Steve Harris executive vice president. Mike Riley ipee counsel. Mark Kaminky vp/finance. Lambert Smith editorial director. Joe Funk director of operations. Marc Camron publicity manager. Kate Rogers circulation director. Val Russell circulation manager. jack Copley contract publishing manager. Кеп Williams production coordinator. John Bom production manager. Dave McCracken advertising coordinator. Mike Darling 20700 Ventura Blvd. contact: Woodland Hills, CA 818-712 national ad director. Jeffrey Eisenberg national ad manager. Jon Yoffie account executive. Karen Landon ad coordinator. Suzanne Farrell new york office. (212) 984-0730 account executive. Michele Citrin Audit Bureau of Circulations EGM and Sendai Media Group are trademarks of Sendai Publishing Group, Inc. So what's new? We (and 99 percent of the journalists in the world) krew that this would happen months ago. There was just no way that Nintendo could make enough systems for both Japan and the U.S. by the end of April. What was a big surprise was the wire service announcement that we got right at deadline stating that the Nintendo 64 could be delayed until A last-minute call to Nintendo 0.5. verified that this is indeed what Nintendo of Japan stated to its local business newspapers. The reason for the delay this time—there apparently is a of the key semiconductors that go into the ; N64. Also, should the supply of By Ed Semrad, Editor in Chief these unique parts continue, then the N64 will have to be delayed until an even later point in time. When questioned further, the Nintendo representative stated this parts shortage, if it continues even longer than currently expected, may affect the launch for the rest of the world The Nintendo rep. also supplied us with a clip from Reuters™, one of the most respected wire services. The company paint a brighter picture by quoting a Nintendo of Japan spokesperson who stated, “We cannot rule out delaying it [N64], yet at this moment we have no plan to do so.” Doesn’t sound good. The issue is not clear though. Another article on Feb. 15th, just two days later, states that there is no shortage...so go figure. Now everybody has something new to wonder and complain about. Is there a real parts shortage, or was this a plan of Nintendo’s all along? Did they deliberately say April so that some players would put off a Christmas 1995 purchase of a Saturn or PlayStation? No one will ever know; but this is Nintendo. As Mr. Yamauchi, the president of Nintendo of Japan, stated at the ast Shoshinkai Show, « , When we want to. We will not bend to any outside pressure.” We'll update this further next month. In a second unrelated issue, you will see a preview of a new Sega of Japan (Japan-only) arcade game on page 102. The tentative title is Virtua Fighter Kids. To my Р.К. friends at Capcom... of all the issues that are going to the suits in your company! As everybody can see from this month's cover, Capcom has not yet decided to expand its counting ability to three. Yep, they have decided to continue the sequalitis... this time to their new Street Fighter Alpha line of games. But, the point is— Capcom, what are you going to do after this game? Let me make a suggestion: Do NOT do what Sega did with their VF series. Please don't succumb to the pressure of doing a coin- op. Perhaps, (can I say it?) the real SF3? AII kidding aside, good job on SF Alpha 2. With the typical superb fine-tuning that you do on your games, this fighter will be the best (and last?) of the series. Solving the Mystery means Visiting the Dark Pit ¢ “THE NEW GENRE OF INTERACTIVE In ГУ HORROR!'-GAME FAN х D... the Daughter, A full moon rises over L.A. National D... Darkness. Hospital. Inside-the father, a doctor Di. Destiny. SPINE-TINGLING. gone mad. Outside-the daughter... ACTION!—EGM $ D... Delirium. "SLICK, STYLISH, z the innocent, the seeker. You are about SCARY FUN!” -GAME PLAYERS D... Death. to enter the darkness forever! D... Damnation. Buried within is a secret to D. Solve the mystery and enter the D sweepstakes at participating retailers. ħttp:/www.acclaimnation.com € fl Rights Reserved, Sega and Sega Salum are trade mar ol Sony Computer Entertainment, VAI gs S, No purchase es write to PO Box 9006 Glen Cove, NY 1154 entertainment inc. Prepare yourself for the most action packed, adrenaline pumping, infinite directional 3-D gaming experience ever! Total freedom! Cruise on foot or fly with your jetpack through 25 wild 3-D environments. 16 of the baddest, maddest monsters in the galaxy. A vast arsenal of weapons including the power drill, flame thrower and meat seeker. MATURE ate AN NOW AVAILABL | \\ | Z \ FOR PLAYSTATION! “= ZZ PlayStation Call 1-800-245-7744 to order, or for more information on Accolade products. МС Wh XI ЧСС V ла лми" ARD out our web sites: “http://www.accolade.com http://www.anychanel.com 3 4 Accolade; Inca 5300 Stevens Creek Bivd., Suite 500, San Jose, CA 95129 PO'ed is a trademark of Any Channel, Inc. Used uf by Accüjade, Inc. ©1996 Any Channel. Inc. Distributed by WEA (Warner/ Elektra/Atlantic Corp.) a Warner Music Group Company. All rights reserved, Licensed by Sony Computer Entertainment America for use with the Digital Software Association. Manufactured game cOnsole, PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Interactive USA. 15 SOFTWARE IS COMPATIBLE WITH PLAYSTATION GAME CONSOLES WITH THE NTSC U/C DESIGNATION. U.S. AND FOREIGN PATENTS PENDING ` Are you already tired of those 3-D fighting games? Ready to go back to the good oM days of blasting. everything es ieces? Well the check out this month's edition of the Ei Strategy Guide on beth Fire. ј er ЕС TRONIC GAMING = MONTHLY Agile Warriors Alien Trilogy Arc the Lad Baldies. Beyond the Beyond Braindead 13 Clockwork Knight 2 College Slam Congo D Darius Gaiden DarkStalkers’ Revenge Defcon 5 Devil Summoner Doom EWJ 2 Final Fantasy VII Floating Runner Foes of Ali Frantic Flea Garfield Gargoyles Gex Guardian Heroes Horned Owl Johnny Bazookatone Krazy Ivan Loaded Lost Gladiators Magic Carpet MD the Fishing Master Mayhem Myst Namco Collection Vol. 1 NBA Jam: TE Need for Speed NFL Quarterback Club '96 NFL Power Play Ninja Masters Over the Top Po'ed Raven Project Return Fire: MOD Revolution X Ridge Racer Revolution Sega Rally Championship Separation Anxiety Shokendo Silverload Solar Crusade Sonic Fighting Spot Goes to Hollywood Starwinder Steel Harbinger Street Fighter Alpha Street Fighter Alpha 2 Tetris Blast Theme Park ThunderStrike 2 Top Gun UMK3 Virtua Fighter Kids Virtual Hydlide War Gods Warhammer: SotHR Wing Commander 3 DIRECTORY 50 COVER ART BY: ANDREW KUDELKA | STREET FIGHTER ALPHA 2 SMASHES ONTO THIS ISSUE’S COVER. STORY BEGINS ON PAGE 54! I COVER STORY INSERT COIN PRESS START REVIEW CREW GAMING GOSSIP TRICKS OF THE TRADE SPECIAL FEATURES NEXT WAVE NEXT WAVE PROTOS TEAM EGM INTERFACE: LETTERS TO THE EDITOR ADVERTISING INDEX Beware of dangerous vacuum cleaners and electricity in this wacky game—Frantic Flea. Use music and Aerosmith to stop the troops of the Legions of the NON in Revolution X. Save a bunch of desolate set- tlers from the hardships of the Western frontier in Silverload. MENTS 88-107 108-116 118-120 122 NINTENDO'S SYSTEM TO BE RELEASED IN THE U.S. ON SEPT. 30! Although gamers in Japan might be playing Nintendo’s new “super sys- tem” in the spring, U.S. gamers will have to wait until Sept. 30. According to Howard Lincoln, NoA chairman, it wasn't “feasible” to release the sys- tem in April. However, there is still a possibility for a surprise launch, but it seems highly unlikely. As well, the system's name changed from Ultra 64 to Nintendo 64, because company officials wanted to establish a sin- gle product identity. Check out the Press Start section for more N64 info! "The newest delay was needed to avoid what happened with the 32-Bit systems in 1995..." TAKE A SNEAK PEEK AT CAPCOM'S LATEST STREET FIGHTER GAME! Found accidentally when this cool game was on test, EGM is proud to bring you the latest in Capcom's bag of tricks. In their long-standing tradition, Capcom has come out with another fighting sequel: Street Fighter Alpha 2. However, this time around they've added several new characters as well as brought back two classic fighters: Zangief and Dhaisim. A new combo system and remade backgrounds ensure that this isn't another “champion” edition. “One character, Gen, has two different fighting styles with two completely separate sets of moves!” TRE ULTIMATE MORTAL KOMBAT 3 HITS mo HOME FOR THE SEGA SATURN! | It was only a matter of time before UMK3 came home, and it will soon be available for the Sega Saturn. Gamers can expect to play the old 15 characters as well as seven new ones. Four of the characters—Scorpion, Jade, Reptile and Kitana—are selectable with the rest. However, the oth- ers can only be activated through the discovery of three different Ultimate Kombat Kodes. Also in this awesome game, players can fight in an Eight- player Tournament Mode or battle Noob Siabot, Rain and Human Smoke. "Ultimate MK3 will not only let you play the old 15 characters, hut also seven new ones." FUN...EXCITEMENT...ROMANCE... TERROR...ADVENTURE... THRILLS „ан this and so much more in every issue of ; EGM. Check out Press Start, Tricks of the | Trade, Team EGM and other cool sections. 4 THERE IS SO MUCH INFO JAM-PACKED 8 х 4 IN EACH ISSUE! Just a reminder | you can now play Street Fighter Alpha in the comfort of your own home. If you think you've mastered Street Fighter's brutality, brace yourself, Straight from the #1 arcade hit, Street Fighter Alpha" combines state-of-the-art graphics with all new hidden attacks and multi-level super combos, Match up in head-to-head battles or lock into two-player combat with twelve of the deadliest Street Fighters of all time, Nine © CAPCOM CO. LTD. 1996 © CAPCOM U.S.A., INC. 1996. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CAPCOM, CAPCOM U.S.A., CAPCOM ENTERTAINMENT and Street Fighter are trademarks of CAPCOM CO. LTD. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Sega and Sega Saturn are “100%...possibly the greatest fighting 5 game of all time." * — Game Fan, 2/96 "Flawless controls... perfect arcade -to- PlayStation translation." — GamePro, 3/96 аге your favorites from Street Fighter", Street Fighter II” and Final Fight”. Three are vicious new additions with blazing speed cand secret moves, It adds up to a new walk on the dangerous side of the street, Now located right in your neighborhood, trademarks of Sega Enterprises, Ltd. This official seal is your assurance that this product meets the highest quality standards of Sega™. Buy games and accessories with this seal to be sure that they are compatible with the Sega Saturn?" System. Visit CAPCOM's web-site www.capcom.com "3 THE BEST VIDEO GAME NEWS = Say goodbye to Ultra While the word ultra can still be used to describe gasoline and liquid detergents, don’t use it to talk about Nintendo’s 64-Bit system. Company officials confirmed the demise of the Ultra 64 moniker in favor of Nintendo 64-the name used at Shoshinkai. Copyright concerns weren't the problem, according to Nintendo of America's Howard Lincoln. Rather, Nintendo officials wanted to establish a single product identity worldwide. “We have in the past had this situation where we had different names for the same prod- uct-Super Famicom, Super NES-and differ- ent shapes and colors and hardware," Lincoln said, *it made much better sense to...come up with one name, and one style, one logo, one look around the world." N64 launch in Japan still set for April, put U.S. faces extra wait t's amusingly ironic that the word Nintendo is merely the word “intend” sandwiched by a “No.” Ironic because the company had intended to release its oft-delayed sequel to the Super NES almost simul- taneously this April in Japan, the United States and Europe. Will it happen? No. In a recent statement that surprised absolutely no one within the video-game industry, Nintendo pushed the U.S. launch to Sept. 30 and the European launch to late fall. The April 21 launch date in Japan is still a go as of press time. In a statement to retailers, Nintendo of America’s Peter Main, executive vice president of sales and marketing, said this newest delay was needed to avoid what happened with 32-Bit systems in 1995 when they “failed to receive full product or marketing support.” A predicted upsurge in demand for the system in Japan would've strained Nintendo's ability to pull off a worldwide April launch, according to Main. This newest delay will surely infuriate U.S. gamers, but NOA Chairman Howard Lincoln sought to persuade gamers and retailers that the system is worth the wait. “| think [the retailers’] feeling is that this is a wise decision, and quite frankly, ; they're very positive about it,” Lincoln said. “| think that game developers and our third-party publishers feel the same way. “We had hoped for a simultaneous launch, and that was our plan going into the Shoshinkai Show, and coming out of it,” he added. "It's just not feasible, and so we thought we'd do it this way by letting people know it's a great product but it's going to be a little longer of a wait." What did Nintendo do "this way?" First, it put out an ad (see sidebar) that effect- ively proclaimed the U.S. launch would have no further delays. Next, it released new enticing details surrounding the N64. In both cases, the goal was to keep gamers from deserting Nintendo to join the 32-Bit club. Note too that the Sept. 30 date in no way prevents Nintendo from pulling off a surprise launch, although Such a scenario seems unlikely at this point. The most notable news involved the System's add-on magnetic disk drive (featured later in this issue) and Nintendo's decision to do away with the Ultra 64 name (see sidebar.) Instead, Nintendo plans to market the System worldwide as the Nintendo 64, as well as keep its outwardly appearance the same. This is a radical departure from the Super NES design philosophy, in which Japan, United States and Europe received different looking systems, controllers and product names. "Quite frankly, that was not a difficult decision for us to make,” Lincoln said. “There certainly is some value in [the name] Ultra in the U.S., but I’m hopeful that game players will look at this [system] systems of different countries? Marketing concerns make that an unlikely scenario, and Nintendo officials did not comment on system lockout codes for overseas games. However, the attempt for a unified-system look may be a response to a need for Nintendo to streamline its assembly lines or at least reduce production costs. “Hopefully people will understand that we are dealing with new technology and new production tech- niques,” Lincoln said. “We had hoped for a 8. h : US gamers "^o — simultaneous launch, don't have the will ON SEPTEMBER 30th, DINOSAURS WILL FLY! = @ Р, ر‎ Fueled by growing requests for game demos, Ubi Soft Entertainment has rolled out a demo power to wait until and that was our CD that features Sept. 30 may want nr Rayman, the to turn their heads to plan gong into the company’s popular Japan, where the Shoshinkai Show and FERES April 21 launch has H В 7 character. This marks virtually been set in coming out of it Its the first playable third- stone by Nintendo just not feasible. party demo to come Co. President А out for the Sega АН NINTENDO’ —| Hiroshi Yamauchi. Howard Lincoln, Saturn and Sony According to Lincoln, МОД chairman PlayStation: The demo there will be no pack-in game with the Japanese system; a similar announcement regarding a U.S. system pack-in is expected this May. As far as software is concerned, Main said eight to 12 titles will reach the North American market this year. Lincoln elaborated on software prices, stress- ing that they'll hold true to current Super NES cart costs ($60 to $70). He added that this price limit will apply to both first- and third-party titles, unlike during the launch of the Super NES, when only Nintendo's own titles were kept below $50 while third- parties freely set higher prices. Nintendo of America will official- ly roll out the N64 details next month at E*. "We'll come out with all guns blazing in that presentation to sells for $5.95, and includes a $5 rebate toward the full game. In an effort to bring virtual-reality video gaming within closer reach to gamers, Virtual ico will sell a more affordable version of its television headset/goggles. Dubbed the *Virtual TV,” the unit includes built-in stereo head- phones and can be hooked up to any video-game system. When worn, the Virtual TV projects an image to your eyes that's the equivalent of a 62-inch screen in as Nintendo 64 or N64." In addition to the name change, Lincoln said the color of the Nintendo 64 system worldwide will be the same: the charcoal gray hue shown at Shoshinkai, and not shiny black as shown in earlier photos. "There might be a little bit of variation as we do the final manufacturing and all of that, but the intent is to make it the same color worldwide. | think what was driving this particular decision was just a desire to knock off having one name in Japan, another name The Nintendo 64's Internal organs retailers and third-party your face. The Virtual in the U.S. and Europe. Let's reveal a meticulously planned and publishers,” Lincoln promised. TV retails for $399, just put it all together.” compact layout. The green protru- That's what they intend to do while a version Does this mean that games sion at the top Is where memory anyway. Will it happen? We'll compatible with PC will be standardized between expansion cartridges will plug In. just have to wait and see. games is $799. EGM 17 аа лн EAGERLY AWAITED NINTENDO 64 AD n an attempt to debunk all the hoopla over CD-ROM technology, Nintendo has offered additional information regarding the not- yet-named magnetic disk drive that will debut late this year. A special expansion RAM memory pack will be bundled in with the K у, й ДЖ А, 7 С 7 ; Using numbers from c» Nintendo and other = a, sources, ЕСМ compared gag е the performance of the = шаша Nintendo 64 bulky drive Sas = to other data storage — Q9 @ = devices out on the = = market. Here’s what a eG 64 MB (20 MB read/write; we found out: DATA ACCESS TIME DATA TRANSFER RAVE This benchmark shows the average time it takes to find data on a disc. The N64 bulky drive locates data twice as fast as 2x CD-ROM players including the PlayStation and Saturn, but not nearly as fast as high-end PC data storage devices (times in milliseconds, low numbers are best). BIN Piso | ишип (ср (2x) [o 1 | zp Е CID) N BULKY BONANZA drive that beefs up the memory capability of the machine. According to Nintendo of America Chairman Howard Lincoln, “This expansion unit will give additional RAM memory to the main control deck, and therefore will help for both cartridge games and disk drive games.” An in-depth look (see below) at the performance specs for this peripheral, referred to by some as the “bulky” drive, shows it is quicker than the PlayStation or Saturn’s 2X- speed CD-ROM drives when it comes to data access and transfer speeds, according to Nintendo’s figures. The N64 disks will be slightly larger and thicker than floppy disks. While the 64-MB N64 44 MB read only) T M 128-230 MB (read/write) This benchmark measures how quickly data can be loaded from disc to system memory. Again, the N64 bulky drive trebles the trans- fer rate of 2x CD-ROM players; the slowness of the latter is why Nintendo engineers shunned CD technology in the first place (rates in MB/sec, high numbers are best). иги пшн бий (oS MAGNETIC DRIVE magnetic disks hold merely one-tenth of what CDs can, it has 20 MB of read/write space. This significant chunk of space offers possibilities above and beyond mere game-saving functions. (Imagine an N64 version of Doom in which players can create and save their own specially designed levels, for instance, or a 3-D painting game in which gamers can create and save their works.) Of course, the catch is the price. While Lincoln declined to speculate on a specific cost for the unit, price comparisons with similar PC drives indicate a price between $150-200. Combined with the main con- sole, the total cost for a combo system would hit $400 or more at first-a jump above the current $300 32-Bit machines. The first game planned for the drive is the next offering in the Zelda series. Officials have stated that Shigeru Miyamoto will work on this game after he completing Super Mario 64. 100 MB (read/write) 540-640 MB (read only) М/о Nintendo has not announced how much the bulky drive will cost, but rumors of a $150 price tag sound reasonable. Based on other discs’ prices, it should cost Nintendo roughly $10-15 to manufacture one blank bulky drive disk (retail costs in U.S. dollars; first number is for drive, second is for blank disc). NIPPIE-KL-YAY a QU? £1" Distributed By COMING IN MAY, WINDOWS SSM CD-ROM, SONY PLAYSTATION, SEGA SATURN™ ment; inc. All Rights Reserved, 1996 Fox Interactive Inc; All Rights F High Fierce Energy Attack <