= "M EXCLUSIVE: DRIV3R REVIEWS & XBOX 2 RUMORS!

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USE THE NEW "MATCH-UP STICK" TO. SEE WHO'S AMPED-UP, WHO'S RATTLED, AND WHO'S ABOUT TO GET SCHOOLED.

LEAD YOUR SQUAD TO GLORY ONLINE WITH PLAYSTATION.2 OR XBOXL/VE™ VICTORY PARTIES ARE TWICE AS SWEET AT SOMEBODY ELSE'S HOUSE.

FEEL THE HOME CROWD GET INTO THE GAME WITH THE NEW "STADIUM PULSE’ FANS TAKE THE OFFENSIVE WHILE YOU'RE PLAYING D.

WITH THE NEW "AGILE RUNNING SYSTEM; YOU'LL LEAVE OPPONENTS STANDING IN THEIR TANGLED JOCKS.

` neaafootball05.com It's in the вате? COLLEGIATE nay) ше Л, (тту

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Go anywhere and interact Pick your own path: battle _

Do anything Spider-Man* can Swing through a living, highly with breathtaking new moves with anything. Doc. Ock, bust street crimes - detailed Manhattan. from street to rooftop across and amazing combos. or clash with classic villains. the entire city.

GAMEBOY ADVANCE

Violence

4 اح‎ MARVEL аА ЫНА шалу PlayStation. MES a Fg

CD-ROM SOFTWARE

Spider-Man and all related Marvel characters, TH & © 2004 Marvel Characters, Inc, Spider-Man, the Movie, and Spider-Man 2, the Movie © 2004 Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc, All rights reserved, Game code © 2004 Activision, Inc. and its affiliates. Published and distributed by Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision is a registered trademark of Activision, Inc. and Из affiliates. All rights reserved. “PlayStation” and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logos are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or in other countries and are used under license from Microsoft, TM, 6, Game Boy Advance and the Nintendo GameCube logo are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. PC CD-ROM logo TM and © IEMA 2003. The ratings icon is а registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. activision, сот

EE ГЕ

PLAYERS

AVAILABLE ON ALL MAJOR PLATFORMS. NOW ONLINE FOR XBOX LIVE™, THE РЕАУЗТАТ!О№2 CONSOLE AND PC

"Internet Connection required for PlayStation.2 online play and Xbox LIVE™. PlayStation 2 online play requires Internet Connection, Network Adaptor (for PlayStation 2) and Memory Card (8 (for PlayStation 2) (each sold separately). Not all features available on all platforms. See back of respective product packs for details.

© 2004 Electronic Arts Inc. Electronic Arts, EA, EA SPORTS, the EA SPORTS logo, John Madden Football and "It's in the Game" are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries rights reserved, © 2004 NFL Properties LLC. Team names / logos are trademarks of the teams indicated. All other NFL-related trademarks are trademarks of the National Football League. Officially licensed product of PLAYERS The PLAYERS INC logo is a registered trademark of the NFL players. www.nflplayers.com © 2004 PLAYERS INC. Riddell is a registered trademark of Ridmark Corporation. Xbox and Xbox Live are either registered trademark trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners $РОВТ5 is an Electronic Arts™ brand. v

IT'S IN THE GAME:

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ON AUGUST 12" YOU WILL FEAR THE D.

MADDEN2005.COM

MATURE 17+

Blood and Gore Mature Sexual Themes Strong Language Violence

‘The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay” interactive game © 2004 Vivendi Universal Games, Inc. All Rights Reserved. "The Chronicles of Riddick” "^ & c Universal Studios. Licensed by Universal Studios Licensing LLLP. All Rights Reserved. Vivendi Universal Games and the Vivendi Universal Games logo are trademarks of Vivendi Universal Games, Inc, The Starbreeze Engine Technology 2002-2004 Starbreeze AB. All rights reserved. The Starbreeze Logo is a trademark of Starbreeze AB. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. Microsoft, Xbox. Xbox Live, the Live logo. and the Xbox logos are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks referenced herein are the property of their respective owners.

Parental advisory: A note to parents: Please consult www.{ilmratings.com for information regarding movie ratings in making viewing choices for children.

You are Riddick, the most wanted man in the universe, in an original story set before the events in Universal Pictures' The Chronicles of Riddick’ (starring Vin Diesel), and the breakout hit Pitch Black, which first introduced the enigmatic anti-hero Riddick. Make a dramatic escape from Butcher Bay, the galaxy's deadliest prison, in this intense fusion of first-person shooter, fighter, and stealth adventure.

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THE CHRONICLES- OF

1 [ [Е | Б К

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In has been decades since Major League Baseball has seen the likes of a Tris Speaker or a Connie Mack. Men blessed with

the smarts and raw talent to fill the role of player/manager. But with the advent of Franchise Mode in MLB’ 2005, the

lost art is back with

a twist: Players can ) be managers, owners, m) Я

or all three, in the P:

ultimate test of baseball know-how; as fans control every detail - from player deals to the J

EVERYONE

ermission of Major League Baseball Properti 004 Sony Computer Entertainment America |

and the National Ba: | Hall of Fame and Museum spective layStation" and the “PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Soi

Qu Vari i ay meee ҮҮ Т EA KARIRI S Van

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PlayStation.

LIVE IN YOUR WXRLD. PLAY IN DURS:

sit the official web site at MLB.com. OMLBPA, Official Licensee — Major League Baseball Players Association. Visit the Players Choice on the web at www.bigleaguers.com. 989 Sports and the 989 Sports mputer Entertainment Inc. “Live In Your World. Play In Ours.” is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Americ:

contents

issue 181 - august 2004

LETTERS

18 Write us, won't you?

PRESS START

The latest news, interviews, features, and gaming tidbits

26 SPLINTER CELL 3 Sam plays hide-and-seek again

Our game profs rate your platform’s performance

32 PLAYSTATION 2

34 XBOX

38 GAMECUBE

42 GAME BOY ADVANCE

44 TONY HAWK’S UNDERGROUND 2 AND TEKKEN 5 Tony Hawk and the Iron Fist Tournament return 46 HALO2 Hands-on online 48 1-800-CONFESS Game counselors spill the beans on brain-dead callers 50 THE LEGEND OF ZELDA Li'l Link gets a man-sized makeover 54 EGM INTERNATIONAL Too fanciful to be true? Goofy games from Tokyo's Tenderloin district 56 CELEBRITY INTERVIEW Rapper Xzibit buys a vowel 57 ONLINE The online fantasy is far from final 60 COMING SOON Б Football season starts early this August

ee SONY PSP VS. NINTENDO DS

Nintendo's and Sony's new handhelds go head-to-head in our 10-round ruckus, complete with ringside commentary

JOIN ЕСМ'5 REVIEW CREW

No video camera? No problem. Competing in our Review Crew Survivor contest is now easier than ever.

Visit egmsurvivor.1up.com for updated details.

12% ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

REVIEW CREW

Multiplatform

98 DRIV3R

100 MLB SlugFest: Loaded

100 NCAA Football 2005

101 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

101 Mega Man Anniversary Collection

What to put on your shelf, what to leave on the store's

Xbox

106 Full Spectrum Warrior 108 Thief: Deadly Shadows 110 Shadow Ops: Red Mercury

GameCube 110 Tales of Symphonia

102 Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy

PlayStation 2

102 Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow 103 Karaoke Revolution Vol. 2

104 Way of the Samurai 2

104 Smash Court Pro Tennis

TALES OF SYMPHONIA

TRICKS OF THE TRADE

114 DRIV3R 115 Fight Night 115 Disney’s Xtreme Skating Adventure

116 The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay

52 117 The Suffering GRAND THEFT AUTO:

| 24 SAN ANDREAS

' Think twice before jacking that gas guzzler—the new GTA spans three cities in two states

editorial ,

. challenger to arrive—one with plenty of balls and a few dollar signs in its eyes. That -challenger—and it sounds funny to call them

` the underdogs here—is Sony, which debuted a . working PSP (PlayStation Portable) this past _Мау at a videogame trade show. Even though we haven't seen PSP's full arsenal yet, its cool, ‘sophisticated design really impressed. | Nintendo responded in kind by showing off its

) DS at the same show. If the PSP is the slick new Fonz, then the DS is The Matrix's

Game counseling, codes, and cheats

GAME OVER

Funny reviews and funny pages

118 REST OF THE CRAP 120 CROSSWORD 121 NEXT MONTH 122 HSU & CHAN

EGM'S OPINIONATED GUIDE TO WHAT’S NEXT

Good, bland, or bad—we pull no punches in our massive preview feature

Neo, full of exciting powers and potential, but

_ none fully realized just yet.

They're both really different machines, and even though the companies would like to tell you that they're not in direct competition, let's get real: They're gathering up their troops for a schoolyard brawl unlike any we've ever seen in that market. Who's gonna win? Who has the most potential? Which machine are we most excited about? To be continued on pg. 86....

—Dan “Shoe” Hsu, Editor-in-Chief

All content copyright © 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. Reproduction, modification, or transmission, in whole or in part, by any means, without written permission from Ziff Davis Media Inc. is strictly prohibited. All rights reserved.

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 13

Meet UP @ 1UP.com

The all-new 1UP is here, and it's exploding with new features! We've still got all of that great daily content you've come to know and love, but we're now the first-ever destination for gamers to meet, play, get informed, and show off.

Check out the cool new stuff uou can do!

If uou haue a GameFace, we haue a place for you to put it.

Show off your game collection

OUR HANE НЕКЕ and trade games with others!

YOUR GAMEFACE YOUR GAMES е

GameFace on.

Get clubbing! Join clubs or create your own and invite all of your friends.

MY CLUBS (7) =

EGM Fans Members: 364 JOIN THIS CLUB

Shoe's World Members: 496 JOIN THIS CLUB

SOCOM II Club Me 283 JOIN THIS CLUB

YOUR CLUBS

Make friends with other gamers - including us editors.

You Share 3 Friends A

John Davison Oakland CA Points: 75,250

Dan Hsu Honolulu HI Points: 65,250

[ТЩ Sam Kennedy

Mm San Jose СА “м Points: 33,250

YOUR FRIENDS

You've got a voice, let it be heard! Tell everyone what you're playing or doing.

DAN'S 1UP JOURNAL scs My day at the office

ту Prince of Persa: The Sands ol Time n y

‘Dagger of Tene

Tuesday, January 20, 2008 5:17 AM емдш wet

We're all here. Join us at 1UP.com.

we get paid to play

DAN “SHOE” HSU, Editor-in-Chief

You've probably heard of the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), where every major game company tries to wow press, retailers, and analysts with early looks at upcoming goods. For Shoe, it's hell on earth ‘cause there are too many games to cover, but here are some of his personal favorites... ЕЗ Faves: Destroy All Humans!, Halo 2, the new Legend of Zelda, Burnout 3, Unreal Championship 2, Splinter Cell 3

MARK MACDONALD, Executive Editor

After trying to figure out all the fancy doodads and space-age whoozits on the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP for the cover fea- ture, reviewing Mega Man Anniversary Collection was a wel- come trip back to simpler times for Mark.

E3 Faves: Halo 2, Resident Evil 4, Odama, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Okami, Paper Mario 2, PlayStation Portable, Wario Ware DS, Metroid Prime 2

JENNIFER TSAO, Managing Editor

As always, there were plenty of pseudocelebs floating around this year's ЕЗ (watermelon-smashing Gallagher, has-been little guy Gary Coleman, he’s-so-hot-right-now little guy Wee Man, to name just a few). Yet Jennifer somehow managed to leave the show with only a picture of herself and two Playboy bunnies. ЕЗ Faves: Jade Empire, Animal Crossing DS, Final Fantasy ХИ, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, LOTR: Battle for Middle-earth (PC)

CRISPIN BOYER, Senior Editor

Crispin played with a lot of over-the-top peripherals at the big E3 videogame convention, but nothing came close to this vir- tual cockpit contraption, complete with seat belts, navigation system, and the ability to actually fly 300 miles at 130 mph. Publisher: U.S. Army. Price: $2.4 million. Release: Fall.

ЕЗ Faves: Paper Mario 2, Prince of Persia 2, Fable, Halo 2, Doom 3, Final Fantasy ХИ, Metal Gear Solid 3, Resident Evil 4

SHANE BETTENHAUSEN, Previews Editor

If there's a karaoke game in need of reviewin', Shane's your man. He's not a particularly talented singer, but he still belts out Bowie's “Modern Love" (or, if you're lucky, the Bangles’ “Eternal Flame") with reckless abandon. Seen here on a two-day micro- phone bender in Tokyo with EGM contributor Andrew Vestal.

E3 Faves: MGS3, Final Fantasy XII, DK Jungle Beat, Odama, Rumble Roses, Xenosaga ІІ, Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne

СЖ --- DEMIAN LINN, Reviews Editor ي‎ e Demian was nearly overcome with emotion when he hap- pened upon this poignant scene at E3. Oh, poor lady and your crappy cell phone games, one day you'll find happiness. Rather than stop for an illuminating chat, though, he took a picture, laughed, and then bought a $14 grilled cheese. E3 Faves: Halo 2 (duh), Half-Life 2, Burnout 3, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Katamari Damacy, Rumble Roses mud wrestling

BRYAN INTIHAR, News Editor

Some people bitch about the E3 hoopla, but not Bryan. For him, the annual extravaganza is the gaming equivalent of a grand tour through Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory...minus the scary Oompa Loompas. It also gives him a chance to meet and greet fans—like you see here. Or at least that's what he tells himself. E3 Faves: Halo 2, Final Fantasy ХИ, Destroy All Humans!, Burnout 3, Metal Gear Solid 3, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat

SHAWN ELLIOTT, Associate Editor

Over Tang, Shawn and prospective business partner Steve-O discussed plans to publish a game based on Turok’s Tobias Bruckner. You’ll play the part of the cyborg cavalry captain and use upgradeable eye patches to...wait, more Tang, please.

ЕЗ Faves: WarioWare, Inc. DS, Halo 2, Call of Duty: United Offensive (PC), Burnout 3, Half-Life 2, Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Battlefield 2 (PC), Metal Gear Solid 3

16 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

Guest Reviewers

JON DUDLAK Last month, Jon threatened grave action if he had to review "one more samurai game.” We love Jon, but we had to push it.

GREG FORD

All of E3's games, parties, and babes once again managed to wear Ford out. Oh, the humanity.

KEVIN GIFFORD Seeing Whiplash on sale for $4.99 made Kev gruffer than usual this month, Doesn’t anyone like

mad weasels?

PATRICK MAURO This man isn’t on drugs. He's been up four nights straight playing NCAA Football 2005. Now he can taste color.

JOHN RICCIARDI Fearing the ‘swarms of pruri- ent fans he'd no doubt meet at ЕЗ, John went this year disguised as a ninja butterfly.

№ Sure, they know their games. They're totally connected in the industry. And they're all terribly, terribly good looking. But we like the editors of GMR, OFFICIAL U.S, PLAYSTATION MAGAZINE, XBOX NATION, and 1UP.COM because they really rock the ЕЗ party scene.

The Contributors

W Game-counselor-turned-game-mag- freelancer RYAN PAYTON caught up with old pals to relive their zaniest hint-line calls for our 1-800-CONFESS story... Level-35 THF/NIN MIGUEL LOPEZ interviewed the purveyors of his favorite addiction, Final Fantasy ХІ, for Online.. № Writer SCOTT STEINBERG went deep undercover as a rap superstar to hang with Xzibit for our Celebrity Interview... № Tag-team freelancers JUSTIN SPEER and ANDREW VESTAL ro-sham-boed over which games they got to cover in our Opinionated Guide to the Games of E3.... № New York-based freelancer LAUREN GONZALEZ tracked down experts to find out what happens when videogames get real for Reality Check...

ZIFF DAVIS

Editor-in-Chief Dan "Shoe" Hsu Executive Editor Mark MacDonald

Managing Editor Jennifer "General" Tsao

Senior Editor Crispin Boyer

Previews Editor Shane Bettenhausen

Reviews Editor Demian Linn

News Editor Bryan Intihar

Associate Editor Shawn Eliott

Тіске Editor David Hodgson.

Intemational Editor John Ricciardi

Japanese Correspondent Yutaka Ohbuchi

DESIGN

Art Director Monique Convertto

Associate Art Director Stefan Belavy

CONTRIBUTORS

Chris Baker, Robert Cottey, Eboy, Eneone, Jon M. Gibson, Lauren Gonzalez, Jive Studios, Dana Jongewaard, Miguel Lopez, James Mielke, Christian lutt, Greg Orlando Ryan Payton, Mare Saltzman, Norm Scot Seanbaby, Rey Serrano, Nik Schulz, Carrie Shepherd, Justin Speer, Scott Steinberg, Giancarlo Varanini Andrew Vestal, Terry Wong

Founder Steve Harris

Senior Vice President Dale Strang Editorial Director John Davison Creative Director Simon Cox Business Director Cathy Bendoff. COPY DESK Copy Chief Tom Edwards Сору Editors Greg Ford, Susie Ochs, Maritza Refuerzo PRODUCTION Art Production Manager Michele Manousos Senior Production Manager Anne Marie Miguel Production Manager Monica Brent Assistant Production Manager Teresa Newson CIRCULATION Group Circulation Director Tracy Schultz Single Copy Sales Director Bob Kerekes Senior Newsstand Sales Manager Don Galen intemet and Partnership Marketing Dir. Chris Wilkes PRINT SALES Group Publisher Lee Uniacke Associate Group Publisher Stan Taigen ‘Advertising Director Marci Yamaguchi Territory Managers and Acct. Execs. Gaming Accounts Bay Area Bay Area Peninsula Region Manager Mary Gray Account Executive Amy Mishra Northwest North Bay to Oregon, AR, CO, А, ID, KS, LA, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, NM, NV OR, OK, SD, TX, UT, WA, WI, WY, Northwestern Canada District Sales Representative Aaron Gallion Account Executive Rita Kline. Southwest. Southern California and Arizona Regional Sales Manager Julie Steelman Account Executive Eve Friedman ast AL, CT. DE, FL, GA, ІМ, KY, MA, ME, М, MS, NC, NH, NJ, NY. OH, PA, RI, 56 TN, VA, VT, W Eastern Canada Regional Sales Manager lan Sinclair Account Executive Rita Kline

Consumer Accounts. Consumer West

Consumer Accounts Manager Marc Callison ‘Account Executive Candace Droz

Consumer East

Regional Sales Manager Matthew E. Panken Account Executive Candace Droz

1UPcom

VP/General Manager Tom Jessiman Intemet Sales Account Manager Bill Young Editor-in-Chief Sam Kennedy

Senior Advertising Coordinator Tipler Ubbelohde Advertising Coordinator Monet Whitaker

Sales

Sales Sales Assistant Jessica Reback

MARKETING

Marketing Director Rey Ledda

Research Director May Tong

Marketing Coordinator Jason "e before i" Freidenfelds.

To contact Sales and Advertising, please call 415-547-8000

Chairman & CEO

Robert F. Callahan

Chief Operating Officer

Bart W. Catalane

Chief Financial Officer

Derek Irwin.

Senior Executive Vice President,

Publishing Operations

Tom McGrade.

Executive Vice President à

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Michael J. Miller

Executive Vice President,

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Gregory Barton

Senior Vice Presidents

Jasmine Alexander (Technology & Sales Operations) Tim Castelli (РС Magazine Group)

Chris Dobbrow (Corporate Sales & Publisher, eWEEK) Larry Green (Business Development & Worldwide Licensing) Charles Mast (Circulation)

Sloan Seymour (Enterprise Group)

Dale Strang (Game Group)

Jason Young (Internet)

Vice Presidents

Ken Beach (Corporate Sales)

Sara DeCarlo (Database Marketing)

Aaron Goldberg (Market Experts)

Jim Hasl (Event Marketing Group)

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Tom Jessiman (VP and General Manager, 1UP.com)

Michael Krieger (Market Experts)

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dim Louderback (Editor-in-Chief, Internet)

Eric Lundquist Editor-in-Chief, WEEK)

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Paul O'Reilly (Event Marketing Group)

Ellen Pearlman (Editor-in-Chief, CIO Insight)

Chris Maginn (internet)

Melinda Maginn Reilly (Integrated Media & Corporate Sales) Beth Repeta (Human Resources)

Martha Schwartz (Custom/Conference Group)

Pam Spector (Business Development and International Licensing) Tom Steinert-Threlkeld Editor-in-Chief, Baseline) Stephen Sutton (Internet Audience Development) Elda Vale (Research & Market Intelligence) Stephen Veith (Publisher, CIO insight)

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Forget Medals. Forget Honor. Just Survive.

It's 1967. You've been drafted to fight in the most controversial conflict of modern times. Prepare to experience the fear, chaos and atrocities of the Vietnam War. From napalm bombardments to deadly VC booby traps, can you survive your first tour of duty?

Unnerving realism. A graphically harrowing depiction of the terror of war.

Powered by Guerrilla's groundbreaking technology.

“We've never seen a more ShellShockGame.com realistic war game.” - PSM

MATURE 17+

Blood and Gore Intense Violence

Sexual Themes х p Strong Language p Use of Drugs хвох

«©2004 Eidos. Developed by Guerrilla Games BV. Published by Eidos, Inc. ShellShock, ShellShock: Мат '67, the ShellShock logo, Eidos and the Eidos logo are trademarks of the Eidos Group of Companies. Guerrilla Games and the Guerrilla Games logo are trademarks of Guerrilla Games BV. "PlayStation and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, and the Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. All other trademarks are the respective property of their owners. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All rights reserved.

ranting, raving, and a grudge match reconsidered

You'll find а poster-sized version of this here pic on every EGM editor’s ceiling.

Where's the love in your letters column? Everyone has a question to ask, a complaint to make, or something to show off and tell us about, but no one stops to thank you for making the finest mag in the business.

—dJavier Delgado

Would you believe that we edit out effusive praise from almost every letter on these pages? Tootin' our own horn is kind of tacky, and letting readers do it for us isn't that much different. But if it makes you happy,

check out the pic Hayato and

his Phantasy Star Online Episode Ш pals sent us (above).

POST OFFICE

Down for the

ЕСМ #180's Grudge Match got it wrong. Van Helsing didn't come from a long line of other vampire hunters who couldn't kill Dracula—he's the archangel Gabriel. | wouldn’t complain if Count Chocula legitimately won the contest,

but even with Frankenberry and

of the month

Booberry on his side he couldn't and didn't. At least not when Van Helsing is aligned with our Lord.

—Chris

dog

Why do you print such hurtful things? In EGM #179 you quoted EA President John Riccitiello as saying the N-Gage “is a dog.” I'd like to see him sniff down a smuggler from a quarter-mile away or devote his entire life to aiding the blind. Dogs have proven their status as both

intelligent and loving beings. That

said, | feel reluctant to even think about buying another EA game.

—Kurtis Metcalfe

Babbling and bad-mouthing from our message boards, www.boards.1UPcom (look for Electronic Gaming Monthly's forums)

1: Game Design-0-Rama? Nope, it's real.

Bling sells but who's buying? Ghetto fabulous or god-awful—what’s your take on forthcoming urban- inspired games like 25 to Life and Notorious: Die to Drive? Our board

18 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

members break it down:

PontDuJour: "They're no more ‘gangsta’ than the obligatorily thugged-out animal mascot with sunglasses and chain that sells Xtreme Danimals yogurt to kids.” Soapy5: "Makes me wanna bust a cap in whoever's responsible. Recognize." XCOBRA CLUTCHx: "Blacksploitation,

| say.’

MarioFan420: "| dunno. | think they're fine as long as they depict what they intend to depict fairly. | know | wouldn’t want to see a stereotypical representation of the rural community | grew up in." Jigsaw_madman: “1 say the time is right to give rednecks some respect. Just imagine the side quests: cow tipping, mailbox baseball...”

Flame zeroX: "It's been don

A portable for each pocket Have high hopes for Nintendo’s new pocket-sized contraption or are you holding out for Sony’s handheld? DaFro “could care less about the PSP—too many ports and the battery life makes me wanna puke.” Randy_Choked_On_A_SlimJim is skeptical about its price: “No portable should cost more than a console... unless, of course, it’s made out of platinum and has 24-inch spinner rims.” TwoDWarrior agrees: “Ideas will always win out over technology. Advantage: Nintendo DS.” MadMoody wants both but he’s broke and “waiting for the inevitable price drop.” “Silliness,” says Roboman, “it’s all in your priorities.”

Congrats Sam Carriger! As our Letter of the Month writer and one of five gamers who hasn't heard Rob Zombie’s “Dragula,” you’ve scored a subtitled game from EGM's secret stash.

and confused What's with the useless red herb in every Resident Evil game? —Brent Myers

Seeing how your missive arrived via snail mail, we're inclined to think you're serious, Brent. But even though the answer to your question is all over the Internet, we'll give you a hint: Look for the lighter.

for life After seeing other readers’ gaming- inspired tattoos in previous issues, | figured I'd share mine too: Final Fantasy IX's Vivi and Mega Man X personalized

CONTACT EGM

Because we want to know what goes through your head when you're falling asleep with a controller in one hand and a jar of pickled pig's feet in the other. Hit us up at EGM@ziffdavis.com or:

EGM Letters 101 2nd Street, 8th Floor San Francisco, CA 94105

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Moving? Miss an issue? Contact our customer service department.

E-mail: subhelp@egmmag.com Website: http://service.egmmag.com Phone toll-free: (800) 779-1174 Old-fashioned way: P.0. Box 55722 Boulder, CO 80322-5722

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Call (866) 879-9144 to order reprints.

DONT WANT

Don't worry, it'll wash off. No wait...

with my face and a flamethrower. —FPatrick Fee

Cool, now have the black mage cast an Invisibility spell on one and have Mega Man burn off the other.

Extra In EGM #178 you claimed to have a story in the works that could save my life (or at least prolong my life as a gamer). You can't imagine how hard it was waiting for you to "run down a full doc-approved program that'll preserve [my] digits, eyesight, and reflexes," yet when the next issue arrived, the article was missing. | guess it just goes to show that you guys couldn't care less if | went blind. Come on, what do | do? Eat greens? Get out more?

—David Lance

We hope your peepers are still functional enough to read this, David. We decided to hold back our health feature until this fall on account of the deluge of new- game announcements and other news

broadsiding us now. In the meantime, go easy on the junk food and don’t sit too close to the TV.

in the machine Most new television sets come with V-chips (technology that blocks programming based on its rating). So why not include similar protective services in future consoles: a feature that reads a game's ESRB info and plays only those approved by user- established settings? It'd be completely transparent—those with no need for protection don’t have to turn it on. Seems like a win-win situation and something that might keep politicians off our backs for a while longer.

—Josh Puckett

Xbox already offers something of the sort. “We planned ahead to help parents protect their children against games that are not age-appropriate,” a Microsoft representative explains. “Xbox is the only console on the market that has a built-in parental control feature that allows

GAME DESIGN-O-RAMA

Sick of the status quo? Scheme up the game of your dreams and send it (with art) to EGM@ziffdavis.com, subject: design-o-rama

PlayStation.

parents to limit their children’s access to those games that carry ratings appropriate for their child.” Sounds good, assuming li'l Johnny's parents are tech-savvy enough to tweak the settings on his Xbox. We're betting the whippersnapper would work his way around the block before you can say “brave new world.”

Massive | was tipping a few back with some friends at a local Pittsburgh tavern, discussing my plans to rent a movie theater and play Halo on the big screen, when the guy sitting behind us leans over and says he couldn't help but overhear our conversation. Apparently, he runs the IMAX theater at the local science center and has already battled in Blood Gulch on a four-story screen. Better yet, he sweetened the deal by linking up a second Xbox in the adjacent planetarium.

—Anthony Neff

We hope his manager doesn't read this, but the man's a genius.

Final

Final Fantasy Xl seems interesting, but I'm still skeptical. What sort of people can | expect to play with online? Guys without jobs or lives who waste whole weeks learning the game inside and out and then look down on those of us who don't? Or are they willing to lend a hand to people like me who can only dedicate an hour or so a day? | just don't want to invest time and money in the game if | have no hope of ever being

L

OOPS!

Last month’s

DRIV3R cover story

said the game

would ship with a

Teen rating. Well,

turns out the

ESRB labeled the

game Mature, despite developer Reflections’ efforts (which included making the game bloodless) to tone it down. Also, we mistakenly stated that the forthcoming Phantom and ApeXtreme consoles come with 40MB hard drives. In truth, their 40GB drives will let you play more than Cell-phone ringtones.

anything more than a little fish in a huge pond full of people who're afraid of social lives and the sun.

—Richard A. Wright

It’s true, making significant progress in FFXI requires sinking an ungodly amount of time into the game, and some people do this by sacrificing the silly things you mention (rickets, anyone?). But the FFX! community is nothing if not diverse: At any time day or night, you'll find loads of gamers—from the power leveler on a PC in Topeka to the level 8 dilettante on a PS2 in Tokyo. If FFX/ sounds like fun to you, give it a try. Right now you might think you have only an hour a day, but see how many long walks on the beach you take once you hit level 20 and take your first chocobo ride... @%

MARY-KATE AND ASHLEY —

SWEET 21: LICENSED TO DRINK

Put the car keys down and join the twins for a night

of televised debauchery. Switch between Mary-Kate

and Ashley while looking out for your overprotective,

party-crashing parents. Build your flirting skills and

Sweet talk your way into exclusive clubs where

unsavory pervs will put your wang-blocking talents to

the test. Slip up, and they'll slip you a roofie! —Michael LeGere

20 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

A RINGS THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING

resented By

DOUGHNUTS?

THE LARD OF THE RINGS Whoever possesses the one doughnut baked long ago gains the power to quadruple his weight. As the carb-hating hobbit, you must return this deep-fried thing of the devil to Krispy Kreme, where it will remain for all eternity, safe from sausage fingers, medically obese fast-food addicts, and law- enforcement officials everywhere. But beware: There are people who wish to abuse its formidable power. —Aaron Harper

MADDEN 2020 2019: Better graphics aren't possible, and there's no improving on this pigskin sim’s patented PlayaHatin’ controls. It's the man himself who makes this year’s Madden worthwhile. John kicks this season's commentary through the posts with lines like, “Score the most points to win the game!” And don’t worry about the cover curse—the man’s almost dead anyway. Also available on GameTrapezoid.

—Timothy Bowker

information.

Visit www.esrb.org | BUNGIE Y for updated rating X хес қ i LOL" МЕ XBOX

A Perilous Quest...

for Adventure and Survival.

> An action-packed, epic adventure where the storyline changes based on the characters’ relationships. | | y 8

> Exclusive real-time combat engine with hundreds of fierce attacks, spells, and combos.

> Fully customizable character growth system where the player can create the kind of character they want to fight with.

ее По | ra wa E» Y VM = LZ "Иа T o 1 4 7/7 CRA

Fantasy Violence

Suggestive Themes

ESRB CONTENT RATING _www.estb.org

NINTENDO [C GAMECUBE.

TALES OF ЗУМРНОМ TM, © and Nintendo GameCube are trademarks of Nintendo. “2001 Nintendo. The

| b, N i С ECVEJ | ; ; ы =< pu У:

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0 > LEA EZ: à Lr E & m, фуу, Bey: 25 АВ

ress start

gaming news, previews, dishwasher-unsafe games, and other stuff

ALTERED STATE

Commence your California dreamin’—one town is just too small for Vice City sequel

gghead geologists have predicted for = San Fierro ды, years that the Big One s 5 (based on San Francisco)

would rock the San Andreas Day-Glo metropolis Vice City sprawled in every direction but one

sooner or later, and it looks like | 1 А (hint: look up). It was one flat town. San Andreas will not be

they're finally right..almost.Tums ASẸ : | \ so vertically challenged. The city of San Fierro is every bit as

out San Andreas isn’t a quake-rattled $ р hilly as the real-life San Francisco (which has slopes so

fault line—it's a fictional smog- \ steep they can't be climbed by street-cleaning vehicles). /^©

choked state based on California. And the Big One isn't a city-leveling 10.5 temblor—it's monster sequel Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, which'll shake up your PlayStation 2 on October 19.

Set in the early '90s, the game packs an all-new story steeped in Southern California gangland culture (developer Rockstar North is working with rap- video director D.J. Pooh to capture the decade's grim feel). Players guide Carl Johnson, a streetwise gold-capped hombre forced into a life of breaking and entering, drug running, deadly turf wars, and—of course—grand theft anything-that-moves.

New vehicles? Of course. Tweaked aiming controls? Naturally. But the

That means you're in for wild car chases up hills that'll launch you into the bay if you're not careful, and down

jy winding streets that could ruin the upholstery if you're

prone to carsickness. That's Wr 3 OK—you can always steal a \ clean саг if you need to. Think: The famous chase scene from Steve McQeen flick Bullitt.

biggest news about the new GTA

is...well, just how big it is. Unlike pre-

vious installments, which focus only on Los Santos

one town each, this sequel spans three (based on Los

cities in the state of San Andreas. Hey, Angeles)

did somebody say rooooad trip? You'll find swimming —Crispin Boyer

pools and movie stars in

San Andreas’ take on

the City of Angels, but

this ain't Melrose

Place—Los Santos has

more smog, less glam-

our. Main man Carl's

story starts here, right after

he returns to town and finds

his mom murdered and his fam-

ily and friends in a world of hurt.

But life gets worse: Dirty cops frame him for the homicide. He can’t beat the rap, so Carl joins the gangland underworld, planning elaborate burglaries (this sequel will pack more internal environments), protecting his turf, and building a crew—all while hunting his mother’s killer.

Think: The tragic cycle of vicious gang New vehicle numero uno: The bicycle—rapid-tap joypad buttons to pedal (plus violence from Boyz N the Hood. melt unsightly flab if you supersize your character with fast food).

>> GOT US BY THE BALLZ: ATARI ANNOUNCED THREE NEW DRAGON BALL Z TITLES, STARTING WITH DRAGON BALL Z: SUPERSONIC WARRIORS, A FIGHTING GAME THAT SHOULD BE OUT FOR

24» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

WHAT ABOUT...

the soundtrack? Prequel Vice Las Venturas (based on Las Vegas) City's radio stations whipped Whazzat? Vegas isn’t actually in the state of California? Zip it, Rand out enough ’80s tunes to fill seven McNally—developer Rockstar North is sticking its version of Sin CDs, and this sequel’s soundtrack City in San Andreas anyway. Yes, it'll have casinos (the team cer- should be no less rockin’. Rockstar tainly snapped enough research photos in Vegas), and it's been hasn't confirmed any artists yet, but reported that players will even be able to gamble in them they've told us we'll get way (Rockstar won't confirm that aspect). The whole goal of buying more than just rap tunes. Expect as property and building a criminal empire—introduced in Vice much musical variety as Vice City has. B City— will play a larger role : this time, too, but whether s you can actually buy and run x қ +50 Cent? Bullet- your own casino remains to { z riddled rapper 50 be seen. Ё x Cent said in an inter-

Think: All that dirty dealing from view that he'd be

the Robert De Niro movie Casino. involved in the next GTA. Sorry, 50 Cent,

but it's not your birth- day—Rockstar tells us you have noth- ing to do with

this sequel.

Getty Images/Scott Gries

„earthquakes? The game’s makers won't say if San Andreas will rattle the Richter scale. But c'mon—it's based on California and named after the United States’ most famous fault line.

Everything in Between We are ready to rumble.

As if San Andreas’ three cities don’t pack enough

raw mileage, you'll have all the open countryside

in betwixt to explore, too. You'll cruise through

lush forests and stark deserts, visit backwater

hick towns, and wind along sky-high mountain

roads. And if you happen to pass a lake along the =

way, why not take а dip. For the first time in a ж (>)

GTA game, your character can swim. No more

sleeping with the fishes

for you, aquadude.

Think: Any back-roads

chase scene from

Smokey and the Bandit.

+ Stuckey’s? The human body won't last more than 100 miles on a road trip without a quick carb-bombing from this old-timey chain of roadside restaurants. And while San Andreas’ highways won't be dotted with this exact chain (pecan logs aren't quite on the cutting edge of gang culture), the game will feature fast-food joints that'll keep your character's new sta- mina bar topped off. Pig out and you'll even develop a spare-tire gut. 4%

GAME BOY ADVANCE RIGHT NOW. THIS FALL, ATARI WILL RELEASE FIGHTER DRAGON BALL Z: BUDOKAI 3 FOR PLAYSTATION 2 AND DRAGON BALL Z: BUU'S FURY, AN RPG FOR GBA... >>

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 25

Xbox version should look as good as the

PC one shown here.

SPLINTER CELL

No rest for the stealthy

hose sneaky bastards. We're not

even done playing all the ver-

sions of Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow, and Ubisoft's already slipping іп a sequel for us to think about. Well, ready or not, Splinter Cell 3 is on its way for release this holiday season. This announcement is so early, Ubisoft hasn't even said which consoles the stealth- action sequel will appear on, but the inside word is that we'll see it on Xbox first, fol- lowed by PS2 and maybe GameCube later, just like previous editions.

Gameplay improvements in Splinter Cell 3 are a given. “Environments are less linear," says Mathieu Ferland, producer. "You can decide what you want to do." You also get some new moves (as do your enemies). For example:

Situation: The enemy is on the other side of a paper wall or door.

Tear through the wall and choke him or bash down the door and knock him out with it.

Situation: You shoot out a light or blow out a candle so you can sneak around in the dark.

The enemy lights up a flare or fires the candle back up to see in the dark.

In multiplayer, you can cooperate on two- player missions:

>> THE WWE'S OILED-UP MEN (AND WOMEN) RETURN TO THE WRESTLING RING IN SMACKDOWN!

Situation: The ledge is too tall. Boost your teammate up, then he can pull you up after him.

Situation: You need to climb up the side of a building, but people inside will see you through the windows.

Have your teammate (who's already on the roof) drop a rope down. While you're climbing up, communicate with him (via voice chat) whether to slide

you left or right to avoid the peeping eyes.

A final piece of good news: The develop- ers (who are a different team from the one that made Pandora Tomorrow— each crew is working on every other Splinter Cell) hinted to us that Pandora Tomorrow's revolutionary two-spies-ver- sus-two-mercenaries multiplayer will make it into Splinter Cell 3.

New move No. 20: You can pull this guy off

the ledge to his 40-foot doom. If another enemy is underneath him, he'll bite it, too.

26 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

GRUDGE MATCH

Hands at 10 and 2, people!

= ——— —— KY 2 DRIV3R DRIVER'S ED What’s really the true test of a wheelman’s skills—Atari’s undercover-cop

carjacker or driving that queer little Cavalier with the extra brake on the instructor’s side at age 15? Buckle the hell up and let’s find out.

VEHICLES

Forklifts, boats, and mullet-powered muscle machines Advantage: DRIV3R

LOCATIONS.

Istanbul, Miami, я and Nice

| Advantage: = EZ DRIV3R

LESSONS LEARNED

Don't drink and drive. Drive just after drinking, like your instructor Advantage;

ADVERSARIES ў Guys with guns і 1 Advantage: Parallel parking a $ 1j DRIV3R CE RIDING SHOTGUN

DPA CR rien Sub-base-model compact featuring demeaning roof placard

The school parking lot, cul-de-sacs

Hit a big enough bump and you can land that 18-wheeler on the roof

A streetwise mutha fuzzah named Jones ` Advantage: DRIV3R

That kid who came from gym class and got back sweat all over the vinyl seat

MISSION

Get license, borrow ^ Mom's wagon, and , make it with Betty at The Point Advantage: Driver’s Ed

WINNER: DRIV3R

Destroy lots of stuff as you infiltrate a ring of international car thieves

AW (PS2) THIS FALL AND WWE WRESTLEMANIA 21 (XB) EARLY NEXT YEAI

ONE MAN SAW IT COMING

ПІ ШЕШІПТІ ПП MEM Таг ШІП HEATERS “111!

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FENSIVE TACTICS

UPGRADE YOUR WANZERS WITH DEVASTATING WEAPONS AND ABILITIES

AVAILABLE NOW

Mild Language т i Violence 92003, 2004 SQUARE ENIX CO. LTD,

(>) ress start 3 wrap-up

WRAP-UP.

Gk

“Lock up your booth babes! EGM -< invades videogame megashow ЕЗ

П A

А s Wb. 2, A ң х х OM ual. wooping Army gunships, geneti- 2004 came alive with megagames—a

E 6 cally engineered show booth

E babes gussied up as vampires, supersized dudes weighed down by gar- ish tchotchkes.... “Оһ gawd,” said the Los Angeles locals as they rolled up their Hummer windows. “The gamers are back in town.”

That's right, L.A. looky-loos—fear the Electronic Entertainment Expo, the annual game-biz trade show/cybercircus known less cumbersomely as E3 (which is what we'll call it henceforth). And if you weren’t one of the 65,000 industry pros who trekked to this.year’s 10th аппімег- sary show at the sprawling Los Angeles Convention Center in mid-May, you didn’t miss anything—because we're about to reveal all that was important.

More dazzling than'last year’s expo, E3

mance at the expo...

mature-looking Zelda for GameCube, a playable Halo 2 (and news of its Nov. 9 release date) for Xbox, a polished Metal Gear Solid 3 for PlayStation 2, plus about 60 more hot titles you'll read about later in the issue. But the biggest news came in the smallest packages: Sony’s PSP and `` AS Nintendo's DS portable game systems, both of which were unveiled and ready ^ . ^ for play (see our hands-on cover story on page 86). E

The only topic not under open discus- Sion was the next generation of hardware from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. But guess what? We got them to talk about their next systems anywayeFlip the page for that info, full access tû the show, and our rating for each system’s perfor-

(746

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3 є » 5 9

а > ° SHOW AND TELL...

“| came all the way from Middle-earth, and all | got was this lousy ring,” says hardcore gamer Elijah “Frodo” Wood. 2) TV’s Tom Green once humped a dead moose. EGM’s беапһаһу had to review Barbie’s Horse Adventures. Stalemate! 3) UN Secretary General Kofi Annan confers with General Assembly President Julian Hunte. 2) Not pictured: This cosplay couple’s first child, who will dress as Final Fantasy until suspended from school for inappropriate attire. “| learned it from you!” he will shout at his parents. 5) Resident Evil’s Jill Valentine: Surprisingly perky...has kind of a cruise-director thing happenin’. 6) Two screens for the price of one? Boss! Flip to page 86 to see Nintendo’s newly unveiled DS portable and its competition, Sony's PSP. 7) Note to readers of last year’s ЕЗ wrap-up: Microprocessor co-inventor Stan Mazor is back and hotter than ever. 5) Homemade stormtroopers enforce evil will of make-believe galaxy-spanning empire, chafe under hot lights. ©) Playboy bunnies apply body-butter power-up in Playboy Mansion for PlayStation 2 and Xbox. 10) The American family, as mandated by Nintendo when it rules world in 2074.

[ q

“Where's the humor in online gaming? Where's the farm animals?”

—Ted Price, president of Ratchet & Clank developer Insomniac

22 E 2 № PlayStation 2 is the go-to system for super sequels such as Metal Gear Solid 3 (left), Final Fantasy XII (above), and GTA: San Andreas. But it has several slick all-new games, too, such as God of War (below).

Monster sequels, slick all-new eames, and elitzy online enhancements put Sony on top

ours before the union guys plug in E3's 1.21- gigawatt bass woofers and animatronic mas- cots, the game industry's three major players

attempt to outdo each other with their respective press conferences. And while Nintendo's and Microsoft's pre-

Iii Future in his hand: Sony's Kaz Hirai palms the new PSP portable (see page 86), which stole some of PS2's thunder.

>> АТ ЕЗ, XENOSAGA EPISODE Il DEVELOPER MONOLITH SOFT SAID THAT THOSE WHO PRE-ORDER ITS CINEMA-HEAVY ROI

32» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

show events rely on fanboy service and celebrity splash to sell their respective systems’ sizzle, Sony's perennial- ly bland conference sells the steak—a dry cut of beef that kinda tastes like pie charts. Sony President Kaz Hirai bombards the audience with facts and figures— interspersed with game demos projected on three-story video screens—that back up Sony’s dominance in the hardware war.

But even if Hirai's glorified PowerPoint presentations have us reaching for the snooze button every year, we can't deny the raw data: The PlayStation 2 has more exclusive megagames and a greater variety of them on

the way—including Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Final

Fantasy ХІІ, Metal Gear Solid 3, and Gran Turismo 4— than any other system. "Content is king," Hirai says. "We're trying to push the envelope in terms of innova- tion. Take the EyeToy, for example." Combine all that with a system price drop to $150 and a renewed com- mitment to online gaming (see sidebar), and it's clear that Sony isn't going to abandon the system's base of 71 million worldwide users to focus on new hardware (well, except the PSP portable—see cover story, page 86) anytime soon. "We have created the first 10- year-plus hardware life cycle," Hirai says of the original PlayStation. It's a life cycle Sony hopes PS2 will follow.

PS2: BY THE NUMBERS

Percentage of U.S. house- holds with a PlayStation 2

PS2's new retail price, in dollars, as of May 11

million

AYING GAME (ARRIVII

Number of PlayStation 2 EyeToy camera peripherals shipped worldwide

Number of online-enabled PS2 games available by year’s end

УЗТАПОМ 2 NEXT YEAR)

Wi Auto trader: Tired of that loaded 2004 Mitsubishi Lancer? Sell it online to some schmo who's too busy to build up his lemon.

PLAYSTATION 2 LIVE?

Is the console juggernaut taking a page from Bill Gates’ gang? It sure sounds like it. Though no official timetable was set, Sony plans to create a central online hub for all PS2 owners, thus doing away with today's multiple game logins and passwords. "We must evolve the [online gaming] experience,” says Sony President Kaz Hirai. “Being part of a larger PlayStation 2 online community and moving seamlessly between game lobbies is something we want to establish.”

Community? Easy access to different game lobbies? Microsoft’s Xbox Live service already offers that and much more. But Sony is talking about adding its own little online hook—transactions between gamers. Hirai thinks of it as “an eBay model, where you are reaping the benefits of something you've done [in an onli game]." For example, you could take your tweaked-out custom vehicle from Gran Turismo 4 and sell it to another gamer, someone who doesn't have the time to pimp his or her own ride.

NOTABLE GAMES

Your at-a-glance gander at some of the big PlayStation 2 titles shown at E3. (Games noted with an asterisk are confirmed to have online features.)

August *Final Fantasy XI: Chains of

*Madden NFL 2005 Promathia (expansion pack) Mercenaries

September *Mortal Kombat: Deception

“Def Jam: Fight for NY Playboy Mansion

Silent Hill 4 *Star Wars: Battlefront

*Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2 *Tony Hawk's Underground 2: World

Sly 2: Band of Thieves

October Destruction Tour Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas Viewtiful Joe 2

Jak 3 Virtua Quest November Winter 2004/2005

*Champions of Norrath: Return to Arms Devil May Cry 3

Samurai Legend Musashi

StarCraft: Ghost

X-Men: Legends

*Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition

*GoldenEye: Rogue Agent

*Gran Turismo 4

*Killzone

"Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater *Need for Speed Underground 2 Neo Contra

Prince of Persia 2

"Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal Y 2005

*25 to Life

Destroy All Humans Final Fantasy XII Kingdom Hearts Il ү

Rumble Roses

The Getaway: Black Monday

The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age

The URBZ: Sims in the City God of War

*Rise of the Kasai

*TimeSplitters: Future Perfect

Xenosaga Episode Il: Jenseits von Gut und Bose

Tekken 5

Fall 2004

Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War "Battlefield: Modern Combat “Burnout 3

WILL RECEIVE A “DIRECTOR'S CUT” DVD FEATURING

HLY FOUR AND HALF HOURS OF CUT-SCENES FROM THE ORIGINAL XENOSAGA AND OTHER NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN FOOTAGE.... >>

Here’s Looking at You, Kids

Sony President Kaz Hirai boasts that “the success of

EyeToy demonstrates the insatiable appetite [of gamers]

for something new and something different.” He ain't kid-

ding—the PS2’s camera peripheral is the bee’s knees

with the U.S. and European crowds (not so much in

Japan, though). Expect many more EyeToy games in the months to come, including hoverboard-style racer AntiGrav and the minigame-filled Sega Superstars.

MIA: Tomb Raider and Nico | Despite preshow whispers, this year’s gaming | extravaganza didn’t mark the return of Lady Lara. A | rep from Eidos—the publisher of the troubled | Tomb Raider series—will only say that Ms. Croft's | next adventure is “a ways off.” As for the sequel to the cult-hit adventure /co, Sony's U.S. branch still won't confirm a Stateside release. Shucks.

System Check: Sony’s Next Console

“It’s hard to say at this point,” says Sony's main man Kaz Hirai on the timetable

for PlayStation 3 (or whatever they'll call it). “If anything, we want to make sure we're offering a quantum leap in the user's experience.” Just what constitutes a | quantum leap? “Just compare [the original] PlayStation with PlayStation 2," says | Hir. would say that is a quantum leap. If we don't see as big or bigger jump | [with the next system], then my question is, why would you wanna do something like that? This means we don’t necessarily stick to a five-year life cycle.” > |

PLAYSTATION 2'S ЕЗ REPORT CARD

Strengths:

Weaknesses: Overall:

+ Larger and more var- - Price drop to $150 Spectacular third-party ied library of games not as low as we'd exclusives power an than the competition's hoped for unbeatable lineup of

+ Hot exclusives such as Metal Gear Solid 3, the next Grand Theft Auto, and Final Fantasy XII

+ Sony’s promising to

put more effort into its

PS2 online network,

enhancing its features

- Although top-tier games still dazzle, lesser titles show system's age com- pared to Xbox Online network still not as cohesive as Xbox Live

titles—both online and off—for every flavor of gamer.

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com ® 33

Scores the best shooters and online

service, but where are the new games?

h, snap! Microsoft, at its pre-E3 press confer-

| ence, burned Sony good with a pretaped par-

Mw M ody of The Apprentice, which starred the real Donald Trump giving the ax to actors playing Sony execs who bungled their system’s online strategy. The Donald

EA Sports unleashed Mohammad “1 am the greatest” Ali and other pro athletes to hype its Xbox Live support.

>> CNNMONEY.COM REPORTS THAT MICROSOFT HAS BEEN CONSIDERING A NEW $700 CONSOLE THAT WILL PLAY PC,

34» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

has a point: Compare the features and content of Sony's and Microsoft's online services, and Xbox has a clear edge—one that will continue to sharpen. Just look at Electronic Arts’ announced commitment to online Xbox gaming (see sidebar). “Xbox Live serves as the very foundation of our platform leadership,” says Chief Xbox Officer Robbie Bach. "We're closing in on 1 million sub- scribers. [HBO and AOL] took five years to reach [that goal]. We're doing it in less than half that time."

Robust online growth is fine, but Microsoft really had us at Halo 2, now pegged for a November 9 release (see page 46). "Our expectations are tremendous," says Microsoft Games Studios General Manager Shane Kim. “But | know [developer] Bungie will deliver." Halo 2 is the biggest gun in an arsenal of fall games that includes gloomy shooter Doom 3, monster RPG Fable, and out- of-nowhere racer Forza Motorsport. Still, we walked away from Microsoft's booth with heavy feelings of déjà vu. Where have we seen many of these games before? Oh yeah—at last year's E3. Why didn't the Donald tell Microsoft it needed more new games?

т Xbox's fall exclusives, including Halo 2 (left) and Fable (above), are solid, but бау 24 2005 holds few big names besides Jade Empire (below).

Copies of Halo: Combat Evolved sold worldwide

Price, in dollars, of the Halo 2 collectors’ edition (featur- ing a metal game box and bonus DVD)

Number of countries that play games through

Number of online-enabled Xbox games a year’s end

XBOX, AND NEXT-GENERATION XBOX GAMES... >>

I think we're in for another

genre-defining moment for survival horror. Most Anticipated of 2004 award - IGN

Call of Cthulhu filled us with awe and dread. Best of E3 award - Gamespy

Bethesda once again blazes a trail

in the gaming world.

- Action Trip

Visit www.esrb.org for updated rating information.

a ZeniMax Media company

Il of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth © 2004 Bethesda Softworks LLC, a ZeniMax Media Inc. Distributed under license from Headfirst Productions Ltd. (UK). Call of Cthulhu is a registered trademark of Chaosium Inc. Bethesda Softworks, ZeniMax and their gos are registered trademarks of ZeniMax Media Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox Logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or in other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. Other product and company names referenced herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. All Rights Reserved.

press start: xb report card

Madden NFL 2005

NOTABLE GAMES

Your monthly planner to some of the biggest Xbox titles at the show. (Games noted with an asterisk are confirmed to have online features.)

*Madden NFL 2005 *Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow

*Forza Motorsport

“Dead or Alive: Ultimate Def Jam: Fight for NY Fable

Silent Hill 4

*Halo 2 Prince of Persia 2 The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age Otogi 2 The URBZ: Sims in the City *OutRun 2 *GoldenEye: Rogue Agent StarCraft: Ghost *Need for Speed Underground 2 X-Men: Legends *Midnight Club: DUB Edition

“Battlefield: Modern Combat

“Doom 3 *25 to Life

Mercenaries В.С.

*Mortal Kombat: Deception *Conker: Live & Reloaded Playboy: The Mansion Destroy All Humans!

*Star Wars Battlefront Jade Empire

*Star Wars Republic Commando Kameo: Elements of Power *Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2 Tony Hawk's Underground 2: World Sith Lords

Destruction Tour *TimeSplitters Future Perfect *Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict *MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic—The

TimeSplitters Future Perfect ш Need for Speed Underground 2

=

Save Your Quarters

The Xbox Live upgrades just keep on coming. This fall, Microsoft will launch Xbox Live Arcade—a collection of trivia, board, puzzle, and classic arcade games like Dig Dug (right) and Galaxian that you can download for a small, as yet unde- termined fee. Also due by the end of the year: live online video chat. Via camera peripherals, you and five of your Xbox Live buddies can see each other's mugs while yapping.

MIA: True Fantasy Live Online Xbox's first massively multiplayer online role-playing game, from developer Level 5 (of Dark Cloud fame), was noticeably absent from the show. Will True Fantasy —originally due this summer—make it to reality? "It's "| a very challenging game from a design standpoint," | says Microsoft Game Studios General Manager Shane Kim. “We won't rush it out. We're working hard, and we'll have a lot more to say about it pretty soon."

‘osoft’s Next Console While it's of popular opinion that Microsoft will be the first out of the next-gen gates (some say as early as 2005), the company’s lips are zipped about Хбох'ѕ successor. But when it comes to XNA—Microsoft’s new software development tool—company reps will talk your ear off. "All gamers need to know about XNA is that they're gonna be floored with incredible next-generation graphics, next-gen- eration sound, next-generation [Xbox] Live play," says Corporate Vice President J Allard, “and best part is, it's gonna play on next-generation devices." >

Xbox is set for its best fall yet based on Halo 2 alone. Still, despite its superior online service, Xbox can’t match the breadth of PS2’s library.

The most robust online network—now with content from former fence-sitter Electronic Arts

Halo 2, Fable, Doom 3—all top-tier titles... from last year! Where are the surprises? The roster of big

A killer lineup of first- games starts to taper person shooters and off once you get into role-playing games early 2005

Continued strong Sony’s PS2 price drop support from third- takes away Xbox's party publishers price advantage

ACTIVISION ANNOUNCED TWO MORE SPIDER-MAN GAMES. THE FIRST, DUE NEXT YEAR, IS BASED ON THE COMICS. THE SECOND ARRIVES IN '07 ALONGISDE THE THIRD FLICK..

36 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

eae. [V whip ce lettos

L] Mercy

catwoman.com catwoman.ea.com

GAME BOY ADVANCE

Violence Mild Language

PlayStation. SUFTWARE, i Ж” Challenge Everything”

"| want another Mario—l want a Mario that's relevant to today's teens.”

—Nintendo Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Reggie Fils-Aime

№ Not a boy, not yet a man: Teen Link matures in Legend of Zelda (left). Other showstoppers: Resident Evil 4 (above) and Paper Mario 2 (below).

x ў y

GAMECUBE

“Kicking ass and taking names,” but needs a few more big games

iolence in videogames? Boooring! But what 2 about violence in videogame press confer-

ences? “My name is Reggie, and l'm about kicking ass; I’m about taking names,” roared Reginald Fils-Aime—a former VH1 spin doctor who's built like a linebacker and is now head of Nintendo's sales and marketing—at the company's opening E3 ceremony. Later, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto stormed the stage brandishing a sword and shield from his Legend of Zelda series.

What gives? Is Nintendo suddenly dropping its kiddie

Bi Sword and the sorcerer: Zelda papa Shigeru Miyamoto rattles his saber at the Nintendo press conference.

>> BARITONE ACTORS PATRICK STEWART AND MICHAEL CLARKE DI

38» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

image in favor of something more bloodthirsty?

Not quite. All the inspired theatrics served to obliter- ate memories of last year's girly-man ЕЗ showing and hype a roster of upcoming steroid-enhanced GameCube titles, chief among them Metroid Prime 2 and a surpris- ingly all-grown-up Legend of Zelda (see page 50). Oh, and Nintendo also wheeled out a certain dual-screened portable system (see our cover story on page 86). The audience's assortment of Nintendo fans—ever prone to impassioned reactions—swooned.

And while we were certainly caught up in the moment, we spied a few weaknesses in Nintendo's GameCube battle charge. The company is as stubborn as ever about embracing online gaming. "We believe in the power of community," Fils-Aime says. "We just don't believe that doing it online through a pay-to-play mech- anism is the way that the consumer wants it." And GameCube’s upcoming roster could use a few more megaton games—especially third-party exclusives (Capcom's Resident Evil 4, while spectacular, isn't enough). Even Fils-Aime sees the need. "If | could wave a magic wand, I'd want more franchise characters," һе says. Fils-Aime says Nintendo has several secret new franchises in the works. Just thought we should point that out. The guy knows where we live. >

GC: BY TH

Million

Total number of GameCubes Nintendo expects to sell by the end of this console cycle

Number of games available for GC by year’s end

Average number of games in a GC owner's software library

GC games, which is only one more than a.year ago

ІМ WILL VOICE CHARACTERS IN FORGOTTEN REALMS: DEMON STONE, AN RPG FOR PS2 DUE OUT THIS FALL.... >>

Fifa FUR Е FRAG

This player is going ta take

his game to the top. All the way to the

§/,000.000" Pro Tour.

This is where legends are born. Five annual, worldwide stops; each event with a prize pool of 5200.00". It's where playing the world's best trading card game literally becomes a living. And getting started is easy.

IG

‘The Gathering?

% >. is Wi) eh № © { pol. = чад E. j A

magicthegathering.com mme ТЕШ

Crazy controllers are not new for the Big N (remember the Power Glove for NES? As we learned from Nintendo- funded flick The Wizard, “It’s so bad!”). Nintendo is again breaking the funky barrier of gaming normalcy

you and your friends drum and clap to the rhythm of the in Donkey Konga or guide Nintendo's famous аре

across the screen in the side-scrolling adventure Donkey

Kong Jungle Beat (below). Even the wacky military-pin-

with its latest creation: the DK Bongo controller. This GC ball game Odama (below left) supports the off-the-wall peripheral features sensors and microphones that let

NOTABLE GAMES

Your handy guide to some of the biggest GameCube titles at ЕЗ.

August

Madden NFL 2005

Pikmin 2

WWE: Day of Reckoning Y

September Def Jam: Fight for NY Donkey Konga

October Paper Mario 2

November

GoldenEye: Rogue Agent

King Arthur

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

Need for Speed Underground 2 Prince of Persia 2

The Lord of the Rings: The Third Age The URBZ: Sims in the City

Star Fox Y

controller: While one player uses the standard-issued

W Surprisingly sturdy, the $50 DK Bongo controller (which comes with Donkey Konga) can survive days of spanking.

Е-Е gamepad to maneuver the giant pinball, the other bangs SM қа 45 on the bongos to supercharge soldiers’ morale. b ^ One DK Bongo controller comes packed with every B i copy of Donkey Konga (coming this September for $50). p ВЫ уйт йркеу», If you want a separate controller for Jungle Beat or for 4 multiplayer Donkey Konga pals, Nintendo will sell stand- í Donkey Колари, LI RUP Fes ho conem alone bongos. No price has been announced.

Diss-connected

What a difference a year makes. During Nintendo's last trip to

ЕЗ, the company couldn't shut up about GBA-to-GC connectiv-

ity, showcasing close to 10 high-profile titles that supported

the much-ballyhooed feature. This year, on the other hand,

Street Racing Syndicate saw the number drop to less than a handful of games, with

Virtua Quest only one from Nintendo—the recently released Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Burnout 3 Í 7® Adventures. Perhaps the whole connectivity thing was a gimmick after аі... THUG 2: World Destruction Tour Viewtiful Joe 2 Y

Fall 2004 Amazing Island

MIA: Mario 128

Nintendo's creative whiz Shigeru Miyamoto told us last year, “If | don’t show something of [the next Mario platformer] at the next ЕЗ, ГРИ feel

like | haven't fulfilled my responsibilities." What happened, Shiggy? ЕЗ

2004 came and went without a mere mention of the code-named

Mario 128. But we should’ve known better than to believe him—during the same conversation, Miyamoto said the next Zelda game wouldn't

star a realistic-looking Link. The truth is on page 50.

System Check: Nintendo’s Next Console

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata confirmed that a GameCube follow-up is in the Winter 2004/2005 works and may be unveiled at next year’s ЕЗ, and he boldly predicted it would be “a Geist game revolution.” Nintendo's Reggie Fils-Aime says, "Today's current console experi- Resident Evil 4 ence is a player tethered to a machine tethered to a television. We believe that is old StarCraft: Ghost technology.” So when will this revolution be televised? “The [console] cycle typically X-Men: Legends is every five years,” he says. “Is it going to be 2006? I’m not saying that, but is it Killer 7 going to be around that time period? Absolutely, but not before then.” >

2005

Advance Wars: Under Fire Donkey Kong Jungle Beat Fire Emblem

Odama

The Legend of Zelda TimeSplitters Future Perfect Mario Tennis ¥

GAMECUBE'S ЕЗ REPORT CARD

Strengths: Weaknesses: Overall:

+ Several outstanding - Not as many triple-A Powerhouse first-party first-party titles games as the games (realistic Zelda!)

+ Novel games such as competition have us psyched, even Donkey Kong Jungle - Nintendo still has no as third-party support Beat and Odama love for online gam- continues to slip and show that Nintendo ing—and likely won't Nintendo focuses on DS. continues to innovate until its next genera-

+ The company is tion of hardware

- Third-party support at an all-time low, with next to no exclusives

finally getting over the whole GBA-to-GC connectivity gimmick

>> DEATH, JR. HEADS TO HOLLYWOOD: MANAGEMENT FIRM CIRCLE OF CONFUSION HAS RECENTLY OPTIONED BACKBONE ENTERTAINMENT'S PSP GAME FOR A MOTION PICTURE... >>

40 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

Miracle maker.

They call me Miracle Boy. Not for my gold medals, but because po ‚ Руе survived double back flips, getting hit by а саг and {Пе mega ramp. ^ What makes me so indestructible? Milk. It helps prevent broken bones. J - So you can concentrate on breaking records.

и Ш

ea

Ok анан RUN

2” Square Enix and Disney heroes team up in | Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (left), a lavish role-

WRAP-UP

player with a deep card-battling system. The new Pokémon adventure (right) is based on old games.

GAME BOY ADVANCE

Taking a backseat to Nintendo’s DS

intendo's top brass insist they won't abandon

development on Game Boy Advance games to

focus on the newer, shinier, dual-screenier DS system (which, by the way, is backward compatible with GBA). But after wandering the company's E3 booth, we're not so sure. Just where was Nintendo hiding all the big new GBA games?

The company's lineup of first-party GBA titles—typi- cally the only things worth playing on the system—was far weaker than at past E3s. Take away the nifty-looking Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (named after a magic

Wire Less

Since cabling two GBAs together is about as con- venient as a soup-can telephone, Nintendo has decided to cut the cord. Its new GBA Wireless Adapter (bundled with Pokémon

FireRed and LeafGreen, due

September 7) lets

users chat, locate

nearby users, and

play about a

dozen new titles

currently in

development. ш Cut the cord with this gizmo.

>> AS OF MAY 18, SONY HAS SHIPPED MORE THAN 100 MILLION UNITS OF ITS ORIGINAL PLAYSTATION (INCLUDING THE MINI PS ONE) SINCE THE SYSTEM'S 1994 LAUNCH IN JAPAN... >>

42 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

hat that shrinks hero Link to micro-size), the funky Donkey Kong: King of Swing, and a new Kirby side- scroller, and what's left to get excited about? Certainly not the recycled monster collecting of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen. We liked these games more when they debuted as Pokémon Red and Blue back in 1998. Square Enix and Konami added some third-party pizzazz with Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, Final Fantasy remakes, and Boktai 2, but we can’t help won- dering if we're seeing the beginning of the end of top- quality GBA support now that the DS is in plain view.

Video Killed the Invin Ну Star Nothing good on the boob tube? Did you check your GBA? Nintendo and Majesco think you should. Their GBA video carts plug in and load up like any GBA game and hold up to four episodes of Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Ninja Turtles, or SpongeBob, to name a few. GBA video carts are out now and run about 20 buckeroos.

бөліс X—watch it on GBA.

' NOTABLE GAMES

A list of some of the big Game Boy Advance games at E3.

Donkey Kong Country 2 Gundam Seed: Battle Assault The URBZ: Sims in the City

Astro Boy: Omega Factor Metal Slug Advance Ms. Pac-Man: Maze Madness

[

Mario Party Advance

Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django

Banjo Pilot

Final Fantasy | & Il Advance.

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories

Dragon Ball Z: Buu's Fury Mega Man Zero 3 F-Zero GP Legend Pokémon FireRed

Pokémon LeafGreen

Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap DK: King of Swing

SD Gundam Force

Kirby & The Amazing Mirror Mario Pinball

The Incredibles

Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 2

Mega Man Anniversary Collection

Number of new first-party GBA games announced at ЕЗ

Number of first-party Nintendo DS games announced at ЕЗ

Percent of the world's gaming dollar spent on GBA-related products

DS backward compatibility means that developers won't abandon GBA development anytime soon

Nintendo's new focus on DS games may leave GBA own- ers stuck with more and more third-party games Most third-party games are crap

A weak showing of games compared to previ- ous years. Could GBA be on the way out? 4

М ОТ VIEWING EEE ONES и | i SUUND DRAIN PYROK INES IS

“ONE OF OUR MOST-WANTED GAMES OF 2004" = MINDEA 7F CONSPIRACY

^..0NE OF THE YEAR'S MUST-PLAY EXPERIENCES..." Featuring COLD: "With My Mind" Musie Video. “THIS ONE LEVITATES ABOVE THE PACK.”

“..ОМЕ OF THE MOST INNOVATIVE ACTION GAMES OF THE CURRENT GENERATION.”

MATURE 17+

Blood and Gore T | Intense Violence х 4 | Strong Language PlayStation.2 cj b MIDWAY

E PS2/XB/GC

= When you wipe out in THUG2, you have a ‘shot to recoup some of your lost points by hit- ting the right buttons.

TONY HAWK'S WORLD DESTRUCTION TOUR

Viva la Thug

ast year, Tony Hawk’s Pro

Skater benefited from a mas-

sive makeover—adding a story line, offering free-form goals, and blowing levels to monstrous proportions made Tony Hawk's Underground the freshest grindfest revision in years. Due on all three platforms this November, Underground 2 continues the series" thuggish descent into gleeful insanity with

Playstation 2

9

Five for fighting

Many gamers regarded Tekken 4 as a sideways step for the series—its shallow features list and

been-there, done-that gameplay put it squarely

a dangerous new co-star, MTV's gross-out bad boy Bam Margera.

He heads up Team Bam, a rival group of skate punks (all based on Bam’s real pals) who challenge your heroic Team Hawk to a bizarre world skating tourna- ment in which destruction is the goal. In keeping with the demolition theme, you're able to mark up levels with stickers and graffiti tags (which you can design with

nent to the ground) inject some ingenuity into the staid genre. On

the character front, expect at least three

the included graffiti editor), throw objects at passersby, and cause larger-scale destruction—in one level, you'll ignite a cannon and blow apart a construction site to open another area of the level. Die- hard fans of the original Tony Hawk games will be happy to know that an old- school classic mode will also be included, offering more than 100 different timed goals. — Dana Jongewaard

PC GAMING UPDATE

From the E3 front lines

The biggest highlight of this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo? Getting on the plane home with some infinites- imal portion of my hearing still intact. OK, so the three-day march through the Los Angeles Convention Center isn’t exactly the Trail of Tears, but holding game demos in a running jet turbine would be about as efficient (and pleasant). That said, there was a lot to be happy about on the PC side of things, and not just with the expected titles, like the very impressive Half-Life 2 or Rome: Total War. For instance:

6.Т.А.

With Half-Life 2 and Doom 3 dominating the first-person-shooter landscape, this musclebound little gem has been flying well below the radar. Not anymore. The visually striking S.TA.L.K.E.R. takes place after a second Chernobyl disaster, but the devastated landscape isn’t entirely abandoned—hideous mutants now roam the wasteland. Instead of relying on scripted events, STALKER. uses A.I. to drive the monsters, creating a living world that should never deliver the same horrifying experience twice.

Guild Wars

Free online play? What kind of lunatics would design a game like that? Lunatics with a Blizzard Battle.net pedi- gree, that’s who. This game features satisfying hack-n-slash gameplay a la Diablo Il, only it's much slicker and

behind Namco's other fighting heavyweight, Sou! Calibur Il. But the recently revealed Tekken 5 might put the Iron Fist Tournament back on top. A slick new graphics engine provides the immediate draw, with lifelike characters and inventive fighting are- nas. Stages in a burning building (complete with destructible timber) and secret treasure cove (it coughs up change every time you slam your oppo-

44% ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

>> DAILY VARIETY REPORTS THAT SHOOTING WILL BEGIN THIS SUMMER ON THE TEKKEN MOTION PICTURE. DRUMLINE DIRECTOR CHARLES STONE WILL HELM THE $40 MILLION PROJECT.

new pugilists: Japanese martial artist Asuka Kazama, Chinese monk Feng Wei, and, uh, an African-American ninja named Raven. Scheduled for arcades in late 2004 and for con- soles (PlayStation 2 at least, but possibly more, given SC2’s multiplatform success) in 2005, Tekken 5 seems poised to put the punch back in this popular series. —James Mielke

prettier. Unlike other online RPGs, Guild Wars rewards skill over time invested, granting players new abilities and tal- ents as they finish missions. This could be the next great online addiction. —Robert Coffey, Computer Gaming World

A routine disturbance call. A startling discovery. A catastrophe of Supernatural proportions.

‘Now, trusting only in his paranormal abilities Фа phenomenal array of Weapons, Lazarus Jones is out to capture hordes of tortured souls who seek vengeance on the world, of thesliving.

A

Visit www.esrb.org | for updated rating information.

et to Pian: ad ne P5" Рали, ү, y (ойе f their respective owners.

Multip ayer ( еі 16 things you should

lease don't hate us—we $ Р cecentiy got to play muttiptay er Halo 2. И it helps any, we - can tell you that the game is damn good and that your long wait until. November 9 release will be well worth suffering through. We played one mode і (one-sided capture the flag) on one. map (Zanzibar, an African beach) 797 for hours, and we would've kept on 27 going if ме weren’t told to Іеаџе by the Я people working the demo. Jerkstores. We learned a few interesting things “along the way, which we're passing along to you here. Bottom line: It's. really just “more and better Halo” rather than anything revolutionary, but heck, that's fine by из. --Пап “Shoe” Hsu

87

тете

25

№ а | x And yes, that's 2004."

Хбох Corporate Vice President Peter Moore, joking about the latest (and oft-delayed) release date of Halo 2. It's now set for November 9...2004,

that is. Moore was so confident, he was willing to set the date in skin. He appeared at a press conference with “November 9" tattooed on his arm.

Here's what the outside looks like with that gate open (9). Other interactive bits include these shutters , which defenders can close but still poke through for a protective vantage point. (11) A crushed johnson is not an honorable way to die.

| If this li'l guy (6) can make it to the upstairs control panel, he can open up the main gate (7) to make it much easier for his invading teammates to get in and out of this base. These barrels (8) can be blown up, too. OK, so not everything's so innovative...

46 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY © уйуу. ОРС,

Halo 2 will support at least 16 players (1), including combinations of four teams of four or even eight teams of two. , How eight-team (not р/ауег, but team) А capture the flag could work. Bungie is actually working Ж on this—trying to make every mode work with every 5 possible combination of players and teams, including A capture the flag for eight groups at once. =

That's а rocket launcher mounted оп the back of this Warthog jeep (7), not a machine gun like in the last game. We also know it's a lot more fun to blow stuff up than to put a bunch of bullets in said stuff.

Enemy players may be able to pull you off of this turret to use it for themselves. This should lead to some interesting road-rage moments when players work out who gets to use this ride. Remember, a Warthog has room for three: driver, passenger, and gunner.

You can play as the alien Covenant or the human Spartans, the badass space marine unit of which tough-guy protagonist Master Chief is a member. You can also jump higher than in the first game (3). It feels too floaty at first, but we quickly got used to it. > T

If Covenant players will have different а

physical characteristics (jumping height, speed, etc.) than Spartans. We asked three different people working on the game—and got three totally different responses. Guess we'll have to wait and see. But we did get a hint that the Covenant may be playable in the single-player campaign mode! When we pushed for more details, one product manager would only smile and say, "Bungie has a lot of tricks up its sleeve for Halo 2"

” Like іп the Quake series, some of the more "9, powerful power-ups will be just out of reach. Past the hub of this giant windmill is an Energy Sword. To get to it, you'll have to find and destroy a metal pin to lower 5 a bridge to this spot, then climb through a small opening. f The sword is one helluva weapon. It's worth the effort to get it, but it takes valuable seconds away during the timed capture the flag matches.

You can hold two one-handed guns at the same time (5), which is called “dual-wielding.” You lose the ability to throw grenades, but you can always drop a gun if you have to. You can double up the firepower with two submachine guns (one of the new weapons in Halo 2) or try a smart combo, like a needler pistol for long- range tracking and an SMG for short-range business. By the way, the new assault rifle has a scope now.

Sure, it doesn’t roll off your tongue, but as associate editor Shawn Elliott says, “Better than | ШЕ Sem calling it ‘double-fisting’”

RoE

These Ghosts ity when doing so. Vehicles also take location-specific damage ‚ which can affect handling. If the driver’s going slow enough, try hopping on and kicking them off

Bungie calls "ет “the ultimate son-of-a-bitch stick.” (15) OK, we'll call them that, too. You can wield these Energy Swords for one-hit kills if you get close enough to lock on. Also, check out the logo on the personalized armor —perfect for clans. 4%

VERY THING SCHEDULED FOR THE RELEASE WILL BE ON THE DI:

= = — ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UP.com + 47 —

The guys on the other end of those videogame hint lines call out their silliest, stupidest Callers

ot lost in Legend of Zelda?

Frustrated by Final Fantasy?

Back before stymied players turned to the Internet for instant tips, game-solving salvation came solely

from phone-in hint services such as Nintendo’s Game Counselor Hotline. Not surprisingly, those embattled counselors have heard it all—from angry parental gripes to too-

stupid-to-be-real questions. We've tracked down ex-counselors who recount their favorite calls. Now it's your turn to listen...

— Ryan Payton

MR. CLEAN

Counselor: And that didn’t work?

Counselor: ... Do you think you can fix them?

Counselor James Tang: Thank you for calling Nintendo. How сап І help you? | think there’s something wrong with my Super Nintendo. Counselor: What seems to be the problem? Well, | tried playing it the other night and | couldn't get any of my games to work, so | decided to clean them because | thought they might be dirty.

No, and in fact | think all of my games are ruined. Counselor: How did you clean your games? | put them in the dishwasher on normal cycle.

Counselor: At this point, it may be a good idea to upgrade to а newer system. I'd also recom- mend using a cleaning kit in the future instead of using your dishwasher for your games.

1 wish someone had told me that before.

M Dramatic reenactment: Do not try this at home, you stupids.

THE CLUELESS CALLER Counselor Aapo Bovellan: Nintendo hotline— how can we help you?

How do | get the key from the skeleton standing in the pond?

Counselor: Uh, I’m guessing your game is Shadowgate?

Naw, | don’t think so.

Counselor: Trust me—it’s Shadowgate.

No, | think it’s something else. Counselor: [Fed up with arguing, gives out pertinent Shadowgate tip.]

OK, thanks. | have another game I’m having problems with. Hold on, ГИ get it. Counselor: Actually, the phone lines are really crowded as this is a toll-free number. Maybe you could call back when you have the game?

No. It's too hard to get through.

Counselor: I'm sure you understand that we would like to serve everyone.

Yeah, but never mind. l'Il go get the game.

Dook orare oS P Goren nasi

Duse Оніт Е Пика Osreax| SAVE,

THE MATH WIZ

Sixteen.

out himself.] 1 dunno. You tell me. Counselor: ...

Counselor James Tang: Nintendo hotline—how can I help? In Spyro, how many more fairies do | need to get to have 20 fairies? Counselor: Well, um, how many fairies do you have now?

Counselor: Sooo...there’s 20 fairies and you only have 16, meaning you neeeeeed... [Pauses, hoping the caller will figure this

Counselor: Four. The answer is four fairies. Oh. [Click.]

THE TRACK STAR Counselor James Tang: Thanks for calling Nintendo. How сап І help you? | just got Track & Field for my Game Boy and | think something's wrong with it. Counselor: What seems to be the problem? Well, it's missing the table tennis event. Counselor: ... What do | do? Counselor: Actually, the Track & Field game doesn't have a table tennis event in it. Why not? Counselor: Well... think it's called Track & T Field because all of the events take place either on a track or on a field. a EI MEE Oh. Thanks.

ең w,

Oldies but

Goodies

"| got a lot of

elderly callers

who loved the = Dragon Warrior series because they

Most-wanted

Callers

“We got a lot

of angry calls

about Animal

Crossing. A skin-colored hydrant in

Most Culturally

Intolerant Caller

“| had а woman

who was livid

about the dino

language in Starfox Adventures, She

didn’t need fast reflexes and it was a great time killer for folks in retire- ment homes. They’d chat for hours: ‘Remember me? The guy who beat Dragon Warrior Il with no weapons? It took me over 200 hours!’ Old peo- ple are truly hardcore.”

—Enix Counselor Jake Kazdal

>> YOU CALL IT “NINTENDO,” BUT MOST TIP LINE CALLERS SAY "INTENDO" OR JUST "TENDO," ACCORDING ТО GAME COUNSELORS... >>

“. Ne GAMING MONTHLY • www. ИР сот

the game caused a stir with par- ents, who thought it looked like a wiggling penis. Our database even had a special page on dealing with the call. | waited every day to take this call, but it was always routed to hotline veterans.”

—Nintendo Counselor Rick Sandbom

told me she doesn’t buy games to listen to other languages. І told her it was a language the designers created for the dinosaurs, who only speak it at the beginning. She was convinced it was Spanish, called me а ‘retard,’ and hung up.” —Nintendo Counselor Kyle Green %

$ = Б 5 Е 3

Kids these days are ust ; a bunch of pot-smoking

V rong. Pm a writer, a halfback.

and the last thing I smo

і ыы 6 was an ENTE defense 5 к Drugs aren’t me. My life. My decision.

(>) press start: legend of zelda Уч

Kid Link would have soiled his ІРІ green jerkin at the sight of this.

LIS

rj n E

= Mill

FIRST LOOK: р,

THE LEGEND.. OF ZELDA

Our little baby is all grown up

hen Nintendo unveiled the latest direct follow-up to the cute, cartoony He’s not kidding: Link has assuredly grown

GameCube iteration of The Wind Waker—instead, it’s a startlingly up, leaving behind all his boyish charms—

Legend of Zelda at its 2004 realistic, mature take on the classic по more ultraexpressive doe eyes, friendly Electronic Entertainment Expo press con- franchise. The new game has no offi- talking boat, or Dennis the Menace-style ference, the crowd went absolutely cial title yet, nor a release date, but we slingshot. The new Link echoes the lanky, berserk—grown men wept openly, prim- expect it to hit in late 2005. È grown-up version in Nintendo 64’s and-proper businesswomen squealed like “There were very, very, very, very many Ocarina of Time but is a li'l tougher, with a

schoolgirls, overweight nerds in Hot Topic people out there who wanted Link to T-shirts leapt up and down uncontrollably. change,” laughs series creator Shigeru Someone was probably carried out on a Miyamoto. “We feel that [cartoon style] was stretcher, like at a Michael Jackson concert. the best option for expressing Link as a Why? Contrary to what Nintendo had previ- ^ young, energetic boy in Wind Waker, but ously told us, the new Zelda game isn’t a now we've made him a teenager again."

more rugged tunic and angular features. In fact, he’s not too dissimilar from the ass- kicking elf seen in last year's Soul Calibur И for Cube. Now, all he has to do is ditch that prudish Zelda, hook up with sultry domina- trix Ivy, and then he'll be really mature....

»» WHAT SHOULD YOU EXPECT FROM ZELDA FOR NIN DS? PRODUCER ЕІЈІ AONUMA PROMISES MULTIPLAYER ACTION LIKE THAT IN ZELDA: FOUR SWORDS ADVENTURES (GC).... >>

50 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

Well, vou're wrong. і last time I vest a hit

LiL lalm)”

freevibe.com i 7% MY ANTI-DRUG.

Жы d ы,

©

press start: Legend of zelda

A LEGEND IN THE MAKING

Although Nintendo showed a full two min- utes of in-game footage, details concern- ing the story line and gameplay remain largely off-limits. Still, we've grilled the developers with questions and managed to extract some hints as to what to expect.

Equestrian Action

“One of the big differences between this and Wind Waker is that here, you ride on horseback,” explains Producer Eiji Aonuma. “In Ocarina of Time, Link also rode the horse, but here, you can actually engage in combat on horseback.” Footage showed Link chopping down boar-riding fools from saddleback.

Combat

“As far as the underlying engine is concerned, what we've shown here is actually the exact same engine as Wind Waker,” explains Aonuma. "We've only placed a different look over the top of it.” That’s good news from a swordplay perspective—Wind Waker's excellent combat system never felt fully utilized, but here, it should get room to shine, thanks to an increased number of enemy encounters. We saw Link battling large groups of enemies at once, parrying, dodging, and slashing like a pro.

What Ever Happened

to Baby Link?

Does this mean we've

seen the last of Link as

а cuddly runt? Not nec-

essarily. “I do believe that

if we go back and

decide to do another

story in the realm of

Child Link, then we

may return toon- | shading style that we used in Wind Waker,” says series producer Aonuma,

Dungeons

This game’s labyrinths appear to be a throwback to the older games in the series— the dungeon we saw featured a camera from an angled overhead perspective, kind of like in A Link to the Past (SNES). When Link engaged in combat or pushed a block to solve a puzzle, the view shifted to a close-up Ocarina of Time-type angle.

The World

After the last game’s radically waterlogged world map transformed Hyrule into a menagerie of tiny islands, how will the geography be organized this time? Sadly, that’s still classified info. “It may be suitable to the story to have a central Hyrule field with multiple branches off it,” says Aonuma. “But, it may also make sense to have more diverse, geographically distant locations that you must travel between.”

Either way, expect to get saddle-sore along the way. ёф —Shane Bettenhausen

>> AS FANTASTIC AS THESE LEGEND OF ZELDA SCREENSHOTS ARE, YOU HAVEN'T LIVED UNTIL YOU'VE SEEN THE GAME IN MOTION. SCOPE THE TRAILER AT WWW.GAMETRAILERS.COM.... >>

52 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

"а But your little tag’s wa off. | Гиз а thinker, an uncle, and the last thin

freevibe.c

EGM INTERNATIONAL

Building friendships via...uh, social intercourse

PS2 UNO

Oh please, another card game? Yes, but it's America’s No. 1 card game turned into some- thing resembling the film Battle Royale, minus the sickles and machine guns. As a student at the prestigious Uno Academy, you must survive a series of five-player matches against every anime stereotype in the book, including the karate guy, the nerdy loser, and the mysterious American with the blonde Afro.

Could Uno make its way to our shores? Why not? It's hard to think of another card sim that takes its subject so seriously. For instance, developer Success has even implemented the “You didn’t say ‘Uno!’ Ha ha ha!” rule—you've got to press a separate button when you're down to your last card, or else the computer players penalize you.

Ps2 THE FRIENDSHIP ADVENTURE

What’s with all the sweaty, half-naked Japanese dudes? According to the front of the game box, The Friendship Adventure is “a story of beautiful, intense friendship in a world of men who live for their work.” You play as an up-and-coming TV announcer at a struggling network, and, using your gift of gab, you'll build relationships with your male coworkers to help produce successful programs

Any chance this male-bonding sim will arrive Stateside? Probably not, especially if someone tells the ESRB the game's backstory. The Friendship Adventure is a bowdlerized port of a Japanese PC game where you and your male friends did stuff that exceeded the bounds of your typical friendship. Yes

Not only does this month’s castaway play games giously (she was engaged in a SOCOM 2 battle during our phone interview), but Fast and the Furious star Michelle Rodriguez also lends her voice to DRIV3R (PS2/XB) and is even into making games. We'll look at her first title, Dream Fighters,

in an upcoming EGM,

after we ship her to sea |

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2/XB)

Metal Gear Solid (Ps1) “Metal Gear Solid does a good job

and see which three console games she would want to add fun to her sun.

>> MOVE OVI

54 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

“| love this game—it’s so fun and unpredictable, plus it will remind me of Miami while I’m on my island."

making you believe you are Snake with its great graphics and sound— it's just so fierce.”

, SPIDEY —IDW PUBLISHING IS CREATING А COMIC BOOK BASED ON KONAMI'S METAL GEAR SOLID FRANCHISE. THE FIRST VOLUME HITS STORES THIS SEPTEMBEI

OLD SCHOOL

10 years ago in EGM

Т On the Cover:

Super Return of

the Jedi

The summer of '94

included an exclusive

look at the Super

Nintendo Star Wars

side-scroller. The thought of controlling a bikini-clad Princess Leia still puts a smile on our faces.

Game of the Month: Donkey Kong (Game Boy) Fighting games were all the rage during the mid-’90s, but not this month. The Review Crew went bananas for Nintendo’s slightly upgraded remake of the arcade classic starring the big bad ape.

“Project Reality” No More The Big N revealed a new name for its next console—UItra 64 (it would later change again to Nintendo 64). Nintendo also released the first pics of Ultra 64 games, which included images of a Killer Instinct title.

Namco Museum (PS2/XB/GC) “ра find the biggest compilation of old-school games like Dig Dug and Pole Position. A compilation is allowed, right? Right?"

Photograph by Getty Images

I

YOU HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS THE AGENT WE ARE LOOKING FOR. REPORT TO: GABE LOGAN, 1.Р.С,А. COMMFINDER:-IN-EHIEF. OBJECTIVE: STOP OMEGA STRAIN VIRUS AND THE TERRORISTS LUHO CONTROL IT

ARSENAL: 100+ HIGHLY LETHAL WEAPONS INCLUDING: SILENCED SUBMACHINE BUN. DSC- THERMAL SNIPER RIFLE, CH-9 MACHINE PISTOL, BLASTER GRENADE

MISSION DIRECTIVES: ELIMINATE ALL ENEMY AGENTS AND PREVENT OUTBREAK OF DEADLY MUTATING VIRUS. ANY INFORMATION RECEIVED WILL BE HIGHLY CLASSIFIED AS YOU WILL BE ENGAGING LETHAL INTERNATIONAL ASSASSINS SUCCESS OF THIS GLOBAL COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE OPERATION IS CRUCIAL

PRIORITY: URGENT

THE BEST WEAPON WE HAVE IS YOU!

LIVE IN YOUR WXRLD. PLAY ІМ OURS:

Syphon Filteris a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. ©2004 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “Live In Your World. Play In Ours” and “The best weapon we have is you” are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Online play requires Internet connection and Network Adaptor (for PlayStation 2) and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStation 2) (each sold separately). The "Online" logo is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.

CELEBRITY GAMER:

XZIBIT

The hip-hop heavyweight schools us on getting in the game

crew Xzibit’s groupies and wild stuff going on with my character. | $ sold-out tour dates—it’s the play myself, only meaner. My dude’s going rapper’s penchant for the to have some sick moves on him. [EA] hack-n-slash Gauntlet series that has asked me what type of skills | should be us intrigued. VU Games has caught the busting out with, so | told em І should be vapors, too, having recently cast the all that with some extra s*** on top. performer and host of MTV’s Pimp My Ride as notorious prison guard Abbott EGM: So what’s with the connection in the Xbox sleeper hit The Chronicles between hip-hop and gaming, anyway? of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. X: Hip-hop's just in everything now, you

Also, Xzibit will make a cameo in know? It's like how rock 'n' roll was back Electronic Arts’ upcoming Def Jam: in its day. We've got the car culture, Fight for NY. We checked in with Dr. game culture—it's a generation thing. Dre’s protégé to see why companies are getting X to pimp their games. EGM: We know you can bust

rhymes and pimp out rides— EGM: What gives with the side jobs? think you have the skills to You looking for a second career in make games? gaming like Vin Diesel? X: Yeah, but whatever the

Xzibit: Nah, it’s just a natural progression game’s about, it'd have to for any artist. As a musician, anytime you take a long time for the

can get yourself out there in something player to finish. | hate sim- besides a music video, you've gotta seize ple games. That’s why | the opportunity. dig Gauntlet; its four-

player mode is off the EGM: Yeah, that and the free consoles chain. And | love to and games, right? crack codes and find X: Well, | won't lie. Xbox does strike a dear secrets. I'm so about note to my heart. And PlayStation 2’s got that, it's frightening

some serious game, too. sometimes. ё —Scott Steinberg

EGM: Any titles you want to give a

special shout-out to? z

X: Grand Theft Auto 3, Max Payne, the 3

Gauntlet titles, and Halo 2—Рт waiting T

for that joint.

EGM: How's dropping science on a videogame compare to doing it on one of your records?

X: It's a piece of cake, man. Voiceovers for Chronicles of Riddick took me two or three 20- to 30-minute sessions tops. But for albums you really gotta practice.

EGM: Speaking of Chronicles of Riddick, do you share much in common with your character, Abbott?

X: Only that we both don't stand for any 5***. The same way he handles his busi- ness, | handle mine.

EGM: What about your Def Jam: Fight for NY character? You feelin’ your digi- tal double there, too?

X: That game's crazy. They got all kinds of

56 e ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

$ This is one man

Artz/Getly Images

= by Sebastian.

y

B Final Fantasy ХІ Online players who pick up the Chains of Promathia expansion will explore a much darker side of Vana’diel.

The world of

etter rest your chocobos,

people. Come this fall on

PlayStation 2, your yellow friends are gonna need fresh legs when traveling the new lands of Final Fantasy XI Online’s upcoming expansion, Chains of Promathia. We recently cornered two of the many minds behind Chains—Localization Specialist M.C. Koji Fox and Producer Hiromichi Tanaka—and grilled them on how Square Enix's massively multiplayer online role- playing world is changing.

EGM: What can we expect from this expansion? Inquiring moogle lovers wanna know...

Adding 40 new areas is our main focus. Also, the new story: FFXI is a world based on what we think is a great story, so we're going to show players a different side of the history of

ONLINE NOW

Serving up a fresh dish of new content

Xbox

Project Gotham Racing 2

Forget the jet-set lifestyle (and stomach-curdling airline food), because the Eiffel Tower is just a few megabytes away. Project Gotham Racing 2's Paris booster pack is crammed with eight new cars—from the Ferrari 250TR to the Porsche 356 A Carrera Speedster— and seven fresh tracks to skid out on. But squealing your tires under

ONLINE THIS MONTH

Vana'diel. There will also be a ton of new weapons, items, armor, monsters, and battle systems.

EGM: Any new missions?

As with Zilart [the expansion included with the U.S. copy], there will be new Promathia missions—about 20 or so that tell the story.

EGM: What about additional jobs and races?

As for new jobs and races, we can't comment on that at this time You're not going to get it out of me!

EGM: Ugh. We will accept this reti- cence. Can we look forward to any

is expanding

new player-versus-player events? Ballista [available now] was our first PVP event, and we're going to use it to get lots of feedback from players in order to balance it. We want to make it a game that the players will love—it's going to be a continuing thing. We're also explor: ing new ideas for future PVP gameplay.

EGM: Is Chains of Promathia the last major FFXI upgrade?

Right now, we don't have an end in sight. We plan to release expansions every year to a year and a half. As long as players want to stay in the world, we'll keep supporting them and keep things interesting.

Miguel Lopez

On egmextras.1UP.com — Make sure to stop by our website for a rather humorous chat with the developers of the sexy wrasslin’ game Rumble Roses, plus our full Q&A with the folks behind the next Legend of Zelda for GameCuhe.

Ө а

¥ Project Gotham Racing 2

the Arc de Triomphe isn’t free—this extra content will cost you $4.99.

Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow Ubisoft recently squashed a few pesky problems in Pandora's multi- player mode. The Xbox Live auto- update features a new ranking sys-

^ Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow

tem, which simplifies the point sys- tem (100 points = one level) and dishes out harsher penalties for dropping out of games. Other fixes include arrows that now indicate whether an object is above or below a player’s location, plus annoying in- game freezes. —Jon M. Gibson

>> SONY PICTURES HAS ANNOUNCED THAT A FILM BASED ON THE GETAWAY SERIES IS CURRENTLY IN DEVELOPMENT... >>

THE RUMOR MILL

Gossip that’s too hot to handle

owdy ho, buckaroos—

Quartermann is my name

and spreading gossip is my game. I’ve survived another trip to the city of angels for the annual gam- ingpalooza known as the Electronic Entertainment Expo, and boy, did 1 come back with some scuttlebutt that'll surely rock your world (wouldn’t be much of a gossip mon- ger if | didn't, now would 12). So until we meet again, feel free to drop me a line at quartermann@ziffdavis.com.

Alive 4 is coming to—wait for it—Xbox 2. And here's more mind-blowing news, free of charge—you'll be kicking some DOA booty on Microsoft's Xbox successor as soon as next year. No way? Way.

A game of epic proportions People in the know are telling me that Tecmo isn’t the only one jumping on the Xbox 2 bandwagon. Epic Games (of Unreal fame) is currently pounding the develop- ment pavement on an Xbox 2 launch title, supposedly of the third-person-action variety. Want a sneak peek? Apparently,

Catch you in 30.... —The 0 the pics posted on Epic's developer site, unrealtechnology.com, are early work from the game. Wicked.

Dead or Alive’s next arena

For the last three years, the bouncy beauties of Tecmo’s Dead or Alive fighting series have battled only on Xbox. But times, they are a changin’... One of the Q's most trusted spies hooked me up with this vital info: The long-awaited Dead or

Sega makes

some new friends

You've probably heard by now that acclaimed GameCube developer Silicon Knights (Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes) recently left the Nintendo round table. So what are they up to these days? Word around town is that Silicon Knights is joining forces with the house that Sonic built. And get this—their top-secret project for Sega is an Xbox game. Talk about giv- ing the big N the stink eye.

Compatibility issues

Holy hot tamales—have you seen the new Legend of Zelda for GameCube yet? (Peep it on page 50.) This baby looks good

а E] 3 г”), м м. К] Lu ы -

We hear gals kick even higher on Xbox 2.

REALITY CHECK

Experts explain what happens when videogames get real...

The Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series is

packed with tricks that seem flat-out

impossible to couch-potato skaters. Like, can real-life pro skaters actually jump off five-story buildings or bust a McTwist—basically a rotating for- ward flip—over a hovering helicopter?

“Impossible,” says pro skater Patty Segovia, founder of the All Girl Skate Jam skate camp (www.allgirlskatejam.com). “[Pro skater] Jamie Thomas’ ‘Leap of Faith’ goes down in history for a skater 4 A dropping a two-story building—approximately 17 feet!

That's as realistic as it gets.” And as far as McTwisting 6 over а helicopter, Segovia says Tony Hawk’s Underground

has it all wrong. “[The skater] busts out a McTwist off a

miniramp,” she says, “but because there is no vert on the.

ramp, it wouldn't give the skater enougli into the flip.” Toss the helicopter into tl you get ‘yuck,” says Segovia.

>> RUMOR MILL BO!

58 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

A look at Epic's rumored Xbox 2 project.

enough for the next wave of consoles. | can assure you it ain't, but that doesn't necessarily mean you can't play the game on Nintendo's future system. That's right, dudes and dudettes; I've gotten wind that the company's next console will also run GameCube software. Remember that you read it here first...

More RPG goodness

from BioWare

Canada may be the land of bitter, cold winters, but it's currently home to the hottest role-playing-game developer this side of the Pacific—BioWare. The Q-inator hears that the creator of the Xbox block- buster Stars Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and next year's Jade Empire have another console project well on its way— an RPG with a sci-fi theme. Sorry, folks, but that's all the info | could squeeze outta my sources on this subject...for now.

Submit game scenarios you'd like to see tested in real life to EGM@ziffdavis.com, Write “Reality Check" in the e-mail's subject line.

istration by Eneone

CHARTS

TOP 10 BEST-SELLING GAMES FOR APRIL 2004

NBA Ballers PS2 © Midway

EA Sports Fight Night 2004 XB • EA Sports

52

MVP Baseball 2004 PS2 e EA Sports

Pokémon Colosseum GC * Nintendo

Resident Evil: Outbreak PS2 * Capcom

Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow XB е Ubisoft

NBA Ballers B е Midway

i |

Source: NPD TRSTS Video Games Service. Call (516) 625-6190 for questions regarding this list. "Wolfman's got nards!

Halo: Combat Evolved XB • Microsoft

Hitman: Contracts 10 PS2 * Eidos TOP 10 GAME RENTALS Т. FOR THE WEEK ENDING 05/16/04 u

Red Dead Revolver XB • Rockstar

Van Helsing PS2 * VU Games

NBA Ballers PS2 • Midway

Hitman: Contracts PS2 * Eidos

Transformers

PS2 • Atari

Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain PS2 • Sony CEA

Van Helsing

ХВ е VU Games

EA Sports Fight Night 2004 PS2 ® EA Sports

Hitman: Contracts XB • Eidos

Source: Blockbuster Video

THE Q HEARS THAT MIDWAY'S ROCK 'EM, SOCK 'EM NFL BLITZ SERIES MAY TAKE THE SEASON OFF AND RETURN IN '05 SPORTING AN ALL-NEW LOOK.

www.namco.com

MUN E

Race for [Ash dnd respec, or lay it all on the line in revolutionary online pink slip races.

Visit www.esrb.org SRSgame.com

for updated rating information.

“м. i s eutechnyx reet Racing Syndicate тм & © Namco Hometek Inc. © 2004 Eutechnyx Limited. All rights reserved. Licensed exclusively to Namco Hometek Inc. Trademarks, design patents and copyrights are used with the. ‘permission of the owner VOLKSWAGEN AGI other automotive trademarks, design patents and copyrights belong to their spective owners, "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The Online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox Live, the Live logo, and the Xbox logos are registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the ited States and/or other countries and are used under license from Microsoft. TM, ©, and the Nintendo GameCube logo are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo. The ‘ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective mers. Online play requires intemet connection, Network Adaptor (for PlayStation"2) and Memory Card (8MB) (lor PlayStation"2) (sold separately)

Armored Core: Nexus

Agetec * PS2 — Mech obsessives can build the perfect two-story battlebot and pit it against others via System Link.

A^ PE

Astro Boy Sega * PS2/GBA — Slick jet-baby-pow-

ered action based on a new cartoon that's

based on an old cartoon.

Headhunter: Redemption Sega • PS2/XB — Another third-person action-adventure in the same run-and-

Ghosthunter

Namco ® PS2 — Play a Brad Pitt-look- alike ghostbuster who wields silly gizmos to batter and capture goofball specters.

gun vein as Syphon Filter.

Madden NFL 2005 EA Sports • PS2/XB/GC — Defense is the name of the game in the 15th edition of Madden. This year's title features brainier defensive А.І. (especially іп the secondary), and the all-new Hit Stick tackle system really lets you knock the snot outta ballcarriers.

<

Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow

Ubisoft « XB — Tom Clancy's counter- terrorism team returns with a new single- player campaign and multiplayer modes.

Pikmin 2 Nintendo • GC — You and a pal raise а micro-army of flora to battle fauna and collect Nintendo-themed doodads.

Agetec * PS2 — Perv ghosts pick on yet

another Japanese girl in a training bra. Now that’s scary in more ways than one.

s

Capcom e PS2 — Dino-hunting is hard

work. Repay your troubles with a-health-

replenishing stegosaurus haunch.

Е Astro Boy—would ya believe he’s pushing 50?

ESPN NFL 2005 ESPN Videogames • PS2/XB — ESPN hits the gridiron with customizable cele- brations. Don’t forget your pom-poms.

Mega Man X: Command Mission Capcom e PS2/GC — The Blue Bomber stars in his first console RPG. Bless his battery-powered heart.

NASCAR 2005: Chase the Cup EA Sports * PS2/XB/GC — Learn to speed with production cars on city streets, then work your way into the oval.

NHL FaceOff 2005 989 Sports • PS2 — After a year away from the ice, FaceOff returns with a

robust franchise mode and online play.

= 7 E

Star Ocean: Till the End of Time Square Enix • PS2 — This long-delayed galaxy-spanning role-playing epic finally disembarks. Clear your schedule.

Phantom Brave

Atlus ® PS2 — More strategic battles (and offbeat comedy) from the makers of Disgaea and La Pucelle.

Street Racing Syndicate Namco * PS2/XB/GC — Racing for pink slips is so PC. Put your gal pal’s ass on the line and drive like you mean it.

60 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

WHAT 15 LOCKED, CAN BE OPENED. WHAT IS HIDDEN, CAN BE FOUND. WHAT IS YOURS, CAN BE MINE.

DEADLY SHADOWS,

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Тін (руку © Бан 2004 Developed by lon Storm, LP. Published by Eidos, Inc. Thief: Deadly Shadows, the Thief: Deadly Shadows logo, Eidos and the Eidos logo, lon Storm and the lon Storm logo are all trader eases othe Fidos Group of Compani nies. Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks by Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries and are used under license from Microsoft The rating icon is a registered trademark of the Entertainment Software Association.

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i p e PS2/XB/GC * EA Games • November 2004

The Basics: EA might be in danger of milking The Lord of the Rings dry with post-movie tie-ins (can LOTR kart racing be far behind?), but a turn-based role- playing game in Middle-earth seems a per- fectly fair extension of the franchise. "This

is the game they've wanted to build for the last three years,” says Senior Product Manager Lincoln Hershberger of the inter- nal studio creating The Third Age (the same team responsible for the previous two LOTR games). Now, he says, they can

OF THE RINGS: THE THIRD AGE ©

“cherry-pick” the best moments and char- acters from all three movies with no wor- ries about following an established story line. “It’s the best of both worlds,” he says.

old at some point, but I'm not there yet. This Final Fantasy-meets-LOTR experience gave me shivers all over again with its beautiful spell effects and attack anima- tions, deep character customization, and free-roaming camera.

MORTAL KOMBAT: -| DECEPTION

PS2/XB Midway • Fall 2004

The Basics: The flesh-flaying, corpse-dismembering fighting game is back with a couple of new modes, including a cheap Puzzle Fighter rip-off and a chesslike game where you fight out the conflicts MK-style.

How Was It? These sluggish warriors need a little more spring in their steps to make the hemoglobin- spilling combat more exciting. The puzzle game didn't | do jack for me, but | really like the chess mode. It’s a completely fresh idea that works well here—after you try it, you won't want to go back to boring ol’ versus mode for any fighting game. — Shoe

mm

SIMS IN THE CITY

PS2/XB/GC • EA Games • November 2004

The Basics: Before you get up in arms about the cheesy title of EA’s latest life simulator, hear out one of The Urbz's producers: "We're making fun of ourselves and having a really good time doing it,” says EA’s Virginia McArthur. "We're a total parody of street life." More than your suburban digs have changed: Skill- based microgames now determine your Sim's success.

How Was It? | wasn't initially convinced The Sims could further evolve on a console, but the microgames add a welcome skill component. Plus, it's about time |

How Was It? The movie footage might get

could pierce my Sim's belly button. — — Jennifer Tsao

Cine \

ы‏ یا

BATTLEFRONT

PS2/XB * LucasArts * Fall 2004

The Basics: Battlefront brings PC hit Battlefield 1942's formula of vehicles and vast environments to a galaxy far, far away. Sixteen players and an additional 48 com- puter-controlled drones battle online across planets from both the classic films and the crappy prequels.

How Was It? The Force seems strong with this one. Stringing up Imperial walkers with tow cables is more rewarding when you know that half the enemy team is swearing over their headsets. And while some of the sluggish starfighters feel like they're burning Bantha poodoo, LucasArts has time to fix 'em. —Shawn Elliott

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BATTLEFIELD: MODERN COMBAT

PS2/XB * EA Games ® Fall 2004

The Basics: Two online armies of 12 wage war on foot and in vehicles.

or joyride a bomb-laden jeep into the enemy’s base. Plus, strong clan support (stat tracking, rank promotions, and cus-

PS

| VIEWUIFUL JOE 2

„| PS2/GC • Capcom • Winter 2004

721 The Basics; Part platformer, part beat- -| em-up, Joe is all freaky fun. Play as the

titular hero or his pistol-packing cheer-

©

How Was It? For a series that began with such wild innovation, so far Joe’s sequel seems like more of the same.

How Was It? Battlefield's war machines hit hard and fast—wait till you parachute from a burning Ap: to a tank turret

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VIRTUA QUEST

PS2/GC * Sega * Fall 2004

The Basics: Call it Virtua Fighter Babies—Sega

is hardcore arcade fighting franchise as àn action-packed run-and-jump romp aimed squarely | at tykes. Experience with the series is entirely option: al: You don't play as any of the established VF charac- ters, although you will spar against them and learn their signature moves.

How Was It? Dare | call it...shockingly decent? While Quest won't make the arcade faithful stop demanding a fifth Virtua Fighter game, its blend of tight fighting controls, complex combos, and solid visuals should appease old-school fans while roping in impression

| able series newcomers, — Shane Bettenhausen

tomizable team logos) encourages you nfantry types to be all that

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tive online play.

leader girlfriend, Silvia,

replay time.

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GHOST RECON 2

Р52/ХВ * Ubisoft • Fall 2004

The Basics: “Clunky but qood" is how most couch commandos describe hyperrealistic squad-based shooter Ghost Recon. The sequel ramps up the visuals and engagements (now with air strikes!) to match the realism, “Everything's bigger,” says Producer Heather Chandler. “The maps, the objectives—it just feels more like full-scale war."

How Was It? Your trooper controls more naturally this time, and | got to grips with the command interface pretty quickly. Now | just can't wait for some coopera:

sing their superpowers to speed up, slow down, or

But, as anyone who played the ai original will tell you, that's not nei

PLAYBOY:

THE MANSION

PS2/XB * Arush * Fall 2004

The Basics: It's your dream job: You play as publish- ing icon and legendary ladies’ man Hugh Hefner. You'll set up photo shoots for the magazine, design your very own mansion, and, more important, conduct “business” with your female housegues

How Was It? Entertaining...for now. Hopefully, the developer won't nix planned features like topless nudity and sexual acts, both of which make The Mansion Playmate of the Year material, Otherwise, this опе could end up as а ho-hum virtual dollhouse strug- gling in the shadow of The Sims,

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Bryan Intihar

BURNOUT 3

PS2/XB * EA Games Fall 2004

The Basics: Criterion’s Senior Program- mer Hamish Young needs only three words | to describe the next edition of his team's high-octane, crash-happy racer: "Online, bigger, faster.” Burnout 3 boasts online play (a series first) with up to six drivers,

©

40 tracks, and vastly improved visuals. Plus, the all-important Burnout meter receives some cool tweaks—you can unleash the boost at any time (it doesn’t have to be full) and continued reckless dri- ving yields an unlimited superspeed boost.

How Was It? | put off playing Burnout 2 for far too long, and after getting a short test drive behind 3’s wheel, | won’t make that mistake again. Flooring the pedal while weaving in and out of oncoming traffic looks and feels even better than before. And the sense of speed blew me away: The high-end cars warp down streets with eye- searing quickness...until, of course, they Collide in brutally devastating crashes. —Bryan Intihar

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| GOLDENEYE: ROGUE AGENT ©

PS2/XB/GC • EA Games • November 2004

The Basics: EA hopes to outdo the genre-defining Nintendo 64 first-person shooter GoldenEye with this pseudo-fol- low-up, but sans James Bond—Rogue Agent casts you as a whacked-out, evil cyborg agent working for one of Bond’s

most diabolical foes, Goldfinger.

Unlike EA's recent Bond games, this one doesn’t shake driving, stealth, and flying into your cocktail: Expect nothing but unadulterated first-person gunplay in both the single and multi-player modes.

How Was It? Rogue Agent promises a full-fledged single-player campaign and a robust multiplayer experience, but so far it's delivering on only one of those goals. Asolo mission through a bombed-out Fort Knox offers plenty of thrills, impres-

sive visual effects, and clever enemy A.l., but the one multiplayer level | tried suf- fered from dire slowdown and annoying one-hit death traps—randomly biting it over and over because someone keeps pressing an instant-death switch isn't much fun.

Ditch the death traps, get the game up to speed, and then we'll see if this game truly lives up to its namesake.

—Shane Bettenhausen

ELECTRONIC GAMING-MONTHLY • www/TUP.com:s 65

opinionated = guide: multi

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PS2/XB • Midway • Fall 2004

The Basics: Midway transforms the classic arcade gun game into a dark and gritty shooter set in infamous Area 51, where you (and occasionally fellow hazmat- suited soldiers) are charged with clearing out an alien menace. The game’s hook: The aliens have infected you, allowing you to mutate into a slimy ЕЛ.

How Was It? The game’s spooky atmosphere meshes well with standard first-person-shooting action, but the story line seems kinda like uninspired Half-Life fan fic- tion. I'm most excited about the whole mutation-into- an-alien-beastie angle, although it remains to be seen whether using parasites to suck energy from enemies is more innovative than gimmicky. —Greg Ford

SILENT HILL 4: THE ROOM ©

PS2/XB * Konami * September 2004

The Basics: Henry Townsend finds himself trapped in his apartment. Problematic. Then he finds a creepy hole in his bathroom wall. Like any well-meaning character in a horror movie, he climbs on in. Obscene freak-outs, brain-bending puzzles, and brutal battles ensue.

How Was It? Can Silent Hill still be scary after four games? Yes. Oh God yes. New tricks like first-person- perspective segments, a golf-swing-style power meter for weapons, a helpful sidekick named Eileen, multiple endings, and the series' most horrifying creatures yet have me staying up nights already. © —Andrew Vestal

DEAD ТО КІСНТЅ II: | HELL TO PAY Ё

\| PS2/XB • Namco • Fall 2004

The Basics: The gritty Max Payne-meets-Lassie blas- tathon returns with a revamped graphics engine, 30 new disarm moves, more melee combat, smarter ene- mies, and all-new exotic dancers to ogle.

How Was It? Dead to Rights ІІ played fine, but nothing

about the three levels | tried made it stand out from

—| the other good-guy-gone-bad games—it involved a lot |.

| of slow-mo diving, locking on, and shooting. But it cer-

| tainly has a chance to win us over with its lovable A canine sidekick, Shadow (he wasn't implemented yet), Т

and more than 40 levels of action. —Greg Ford |

hasn't looked this'fine since the Lovésexy tour.

PRINC

PS2/XB/GC * Ubisoft « November 2004

EOFPERSIA2 ©

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DEF JAM: FIGHT FOR

NEW YORK СЭ

The Basics: The sequel to EGM's 2003 Game of the Year further redefines the action-platformer standard.

I

How Was It? As expected, POP2 played nigh flawlessly. The revamped, combo-

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heavy combat feels divine. The Prince can now brandish his enemies' weapons, use his sword to slide down curtains, and slow down enemies while he slices in real time. All that, plus he hed the MC Hammer pant —üGreg Ford

PS2/XB/GC * EA Big * September 2004

The Basics: Hip-hoppers settle their con- siderable differences out of the ring this time as you help former adversary D-Mob | back to the top of the NYC underworld.

How Was It? Our limited stick time

Fe Bi

meant we couldn't get a feel for the five different fighting styles players will mix and match in the final version: The com- bat felt good but not great. Let's hope the story, create-a-character, and extras can

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[his is where RPGs started. Character building, boss monsters, level advancement, special moves— all of it comes from the granddaddy of them all: the DUNGEONS & Dracons® roleplaying game.

We did it all first—and we still do it best. Mor

opinionated guide: ps2

Namco * Spring 2005

The Basics: The second chapter in devel- oper Monolith’s planned five-part space- opera epic sports a different look—the anime-style characters all got realistic eye-reduction makeovers. “We felt that Xenosaga 1’s characters had limited facial

Ev. t ame ы” ңа expressions,” explains Producer Tomohiro Hagiwara. “With Episode Il, we want to express emotions better and appeal to а wider audience.” In addition to changing

the game's visual style, Monolith plans to cut back on the number of CG cut-scenes

longer than its predecessor.

(the company wanted to up the gameplay quotient), add at least one new playable character, and actually make the game

How Was It? The newly remodeled char- acters serve their purpose—regal, realis- tic beauties imbue the action with a gravi- ty that | felt was lacking in the first дате. (Plus, you'll feel less creepy about finding the previously girlish Shion and KOS-MOS

attractive.) Subtly reworked battles also add to the appeal: Shorter animations mean that combat gets resolved more quickly, and expect to climb into your giant robots from the very outset.

Namco has another cool bonus waiting for Xeno fans. Preordering Episode II nets you a director's cut DVD of Episode /: You can relive all the nifty cut-scenes in this four-hour-long digest version.

—Shane Bettenhausen

SLY 2: BAND OF THIEVES

Sony CEA * September 2004

The Basics: Sly’s stealth-platforming sequel ditches the petty thievery in favor of huge Ocean's Eleven- style heists. Other additions include an actual life bar—say good-bye to one-hit deaths—and new playable charac- ters: brawler Murray and brainiac Bentley.

How Was It? Sly 2 plays like a fine-tuned version of the original. Picking pockets with Sly is simple, and each new character has his own easy-to-learn styles. Slick graphics, catchy tunes, and larger levels all impress. Plus, the developers promise Sly 2 will be much longer than the all-too-short original. —Greg Ford

UP YOUR ARSENAL

Sony CEA * November 2004

The Basics: Last year's R&C: Going Commando was stuffed to the gills with things to see and do, but the third game is so big that a single PS2 can't hold it all. Joining the single-player game are online multiplayer modes so full-featured that developer Insomniac's prez Ted Price says, "I consider them their own game."

How Was It? Accessible, fast, and fun. Gamers put off by hardcore military shooters may find R&C’s colorful blasting more their style. Deathmatch and capture-the- flag are both fun, but siege mode simply rules—it's like

Risk, only with bazookas. —Andrew Vestal

Sony CEA * Fall 2004

ЕУЕТОУ: ANTIGRAV ©

The Basics: It may look a lot like developer Harmonix's other rhythm-action games, Frequency and Amplitude, but this one's got unique futuristic cred: You control your onscreen character by moving your arms to hit targets and jumping to do tricks.

How Was It? Like other EyeToy games, AntiGrav won't exactly win awards for depth—the gameplay is admit- tedly simple. The technology could also be a limiting factor; right now, properly aligning your body with the camera is tricky. But any videogame that makes me feel we're closer to the kind of virtual reality we've seen in the movies for years now gets my arms wav- ing with enthusiasm. —Jennifer Tsao

68 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY © www.1UP.com

‘As real as it gets, right down to that squishy feeling in your pants.

Full Spectrum Warrior is urban warfare at its finest. Work light infantry teams in tight surroundings with trouble lurking at all times. This is the reality for today's armies. It could be yours too. At Best Buy; gamers rule.

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ШИ might look like an FF battle, but it sure doesn’t feel like one.

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Square Enix • Summer 2005

The Basics: We knew FFXII would be dif- ferent take on the RPG series—it's the first installment directed by maverick Final Fantasy Tactics creator Yasumi Matsuno— but we didn’t expect it to be this different.

How Was It? After playing a good 45 min- utes of FFXII, | was blown away not only by its remarkable production values (the graphics and music are gorgeous, as expected), but also by how much the gameplay doesn't feel like any other Final Fantasy...well, ever.

“I think that many players will be con- fused at first,” Matsuno says of his epic creation. "They'll feel that they're out of control due to the drastic changes to the system, but I've included a lot of tutorials to prepare them." Trust me, you'll need them. Every aspect of Final Fantasy

FINAL FANTASY ХІІ

©

you've come to expect has been radically altered, from the intricacies of battle to the simple act of opening a door. The new combat system is especially notable, com- bining traditional menu-based FF battle elements with active, real-time movement akin to that of Final Fantasy ХІ. Now, encounters take place on the same maps you explore, and you run around, position- ing yourself for the strike while avoiding getting hit. Matsuno’s even ditched the established FF victory fanfare after each battle. Has he no heart?

Looking beyond all the shocking game- play alterations, the story line seems downright manageable. “FFXI/is a com- ing-of-age tale,” says Matsuno. “You play Vaan, a 17-year-old who gets swept up in а massive conflict through a chance meet- ing.” He'll encounter a vast roster of other

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party characters, like the fair cutie pictured right, Penelo.

Sadly, you'll have time to prepare for all these changes: FFXII will land Stateside in mid-2005. —Shane Bettenhausen

Ш Penelo’s packin’ serious boots... and booty.

70» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY-e-www,1UP.com

opinionated guide: pse

Konami • November 2004

The Basics: Konami delivers hot girl-on- girl wrasslin' with luscious ladies who make the WWE divas look like trannies.

How Was It? Shockingly, Rumble Roses’ lovely ladies play as good as they look.

RUMBLE ROSES c

Each gal comes equipped with special moves and counters that would make even the high-flying Mexican luchadores stand up and cheer. | only hope the story mode is as deep as the developers are advertising. —Bryan Intihar

№ For slightly sexier wrestling, look left.

GOD OF WAR

Sony CEA ® Spring 2005

The Basics: Greek mythology comes to

life via a combination of Devil May Cry's action and /co's environmental puzzles.

How Was It? Fast, fun, and extremely playable. This game features over-the-top

©

violence (fancy ripping off Medusa’s head and using it to turn enemies to stone?) and some innovative play mechanics, like optional button-pressing minigames incorporated into certain enemy fights. Keep your eye on this one. —Greg Ford

ACE COMBAT 5: THE UNSUNG WAR

Namco ® Fall 2004

The Basics: "They're smart, but not smart enough to win the war on their own,” Producer Hiroyuki Ichiyanagi says of the new wingmen who cover your keister in AC5. Issuing simple commands injects some strategy into the aerial fray.

How Was It? Wingmen add a nifty dynamic, but 1 was really craving online dogfights. "We're certainly looking at [that] in a future version," says Ichiyanagi, “but for now we're just focusing on the single-player game" —— —Crispin Boyer

KILLZONE су

Sony CEA ® November 2004

The Basics: It's been hyped as a "Halo killer,” but “Killzone is a very different kind of game,” says Producer Alastair Burns, It’s a squad-based shooter that lets you strap on the Kevlar of four differ- ent commandos (assassin, heavy gunner,

etc.) who don’t give peace a chance.

How Was It? Scripted sequences and gritty war zones reminded me of EA's Medal of Honor series, except with brainier squadmates. —Crispin Boyer

72» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY-«-www.1UP.com

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opinionated ЫЎ guide: pse

works—though when asked to expand, all he said was “Use your imagination.”

there are now meters to indicate gas and brake input and lateral G-forces, so you can see as well as feel when you're about to lose control. Which is nice. Trackside spectators look way, way bet- ter than in 674 Prologue (the Japan- and Europe-only Turismo demo), and cars finally have visible drivers who will lean into corners and react to braking and acceleration. Just as long as there’s no

GRAN TURISMO 4 с)

Sony CEA е November 2004 How Was It? The photo mode is a cool

idea, but I'd rather spend my time on the track. Specifically, the new Nürburgring course, which is the most detailed ver- sion of the ’Ring I’ve ever seen (it's in Enthusia and Forza Motorsport, too), down to the surprisingly bumpy tarmac.

The Basics: Screw the basics. Here's the advanced stuff: GT helmer Kazunori Yamauchi unveiled an all-new photo mode that will allow players to pose and print (assuming you cough up the cash

Course) cars in a variety of high-res environments. You'll never have to buy postcards again.

Yamauchi also confirmed that G74 will feature drift racing, and that flea market,

for a compatible USB photo printer, of

travel agent, and bank modes are in the

The HUD has also changed slightly—

big-head mode.... —Demian Linn

ENTHUSIA

Konami • Spring 2005

The Basics: Ridge Racer vet Manabu Akita is helm- ing this Gran Turismo wannabe, which he says will feature “around 50 tracks in total, and several hun- dred cars.”

How Was It? Far from finished. The game’s only stab at innovation, the “Visual Gravity System,” alerts players to impending spinouts via an onscreen indi- cator. The VGS also uses a gray frame around the screen to simulate the driver's viewpoint...which kind of works using the in-car cam, but just looks weird from the above-car angle. Luckily, another year or so in development should guarantee a more polished final product. —Demian Linn

DEATH BY DEGREES

Namco * October 2004

The Basics: Tekken vixen Nina Williams turns action- adventure heroine, putting her trademark bad-girl Moves on several opponents at once with a super- simplified control scheme. Who needs all those pesky moves, anyway?

How Was It? Using the analog stick to send Nina’s long legs flying in all directions, pull off behind-the- back blocks with a katana, and shatter bones with "critical strikes" would have been more satisfying if the enemies actually reacted. An awful sniper sequence and inane “the crank seems to be missing” puzzle have us hoping this work makes some serious progress before release. —Justin Speer

JAK3

Sony CEA * November 2004 Q

The Basics: Platform heroes Jak and Daxter once again attempt to be all things to all people, blending shooting, jumping, racing, flying, and, hell, probably even golf in this new desert-themed adventure.

How Was It? More. Bigger. Bolder. Boring? | ran, jumped, shot things, rode a lizard that ate smaller lizards, climbed into a turret, drove a dune buggy, and flew. Sure, it looked great and played well the whole time, but it gave me about 763 simultaneous feelings of déjà vu—minus one. | didn't jack any cars. But to make up for it, Jak now has bullet time. Still, if the developers can minimize the frustration factor, it'll be а step up from Jak Il. — Justin Speer

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Unlock hidden characters, upgrade your weapons and find new worlds with these sweet cheats, tips and tricks. Cut out the cards, and stash them in the game case so you can really get into the

game. Check out www.Getintothegame.com to download a coupon for $5 off any game shown here and check out more codes for the latest hot titles.

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Check out www.getintothegame.com io download a coupon for $5 off any game on this card. While you're there, get the scoop on all the hottest games and accessories.

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Witch's Kiss

It's best to pick Spirit Bite and/or Essence Gnaw when choosing Runes to enchant one of Ailish's weapons. These Runes return a small amount of the damage caused by a weapon to Ailish in the form of Spirit Points. Try enchanting her Royal Scepter with two Spirit Bite Runes and she'll be able to use Witch's Kiss to heal the party regularly without ever running out of Ski Points, or having to use valu- able items.

Extended Combos

Tal and Buki can perform long combos that cause incredible amounts of damage. [[3]], TESTI, ОСОЛ, ССТ, C0071, [121 is а juggle combo that knocks most opponents off of their feet. When the [[1]], (0101, [31], (311, (1311, [1311 combo is used, Tal performs a long series of sword swipes, but Buki adds a series of jump kicks to the end of her combo. If the opponent is defeated before the combo is finished, try turning toward a

second opponent and finishing the attack. Just be cautious when using these combos against groups of enemies. They may leave the character's back open to attack. ЖА

Buy Low, Sell High

Kamo's prices are over inflated and he pays less for things than they're actually worth. Avoid shopping at his stores unless the item you want can't be pur- chased anywhere else. Try to buy and sell only at the traders that are found scattered around Haskilia. They offer items for less and pay well for the items found throughout your adven- ture. Each trader also has favorite items and will pay а premium price for them.

* Don't underesti- mate an opponent playing weaker cards. If you ignore these cards, deciding to perform other actions on your turn, the opponent may bring out more powerful cards by using the weak cards as Tributes. Pound away at the opponent and wipe out any card that can be destroyed when the opportunity arises.

© Joey isn't difficult to beat with the right Deck. Fight him a lot at the game's start to earn extra Dominoes and win some really powerful starting cards such as "Baby Dragon" and "Swordsman of Landstar." Don't he surprised if some of the cards are too high for your Duelist Level at first.

Trap Cards

The "Eatgaboon” and other Trap Cards are a great way to catch an opponent off guard. Trap Cards are a must have for everyone's Deck.

Ultimate

Owners Mode

Team

If you create a player with the worst possible statistics, then sign him to a team cheaply, you can then bump up his statistics, making him a good cheap player and a good trade prospect. Do this multiple times to create the ultimate team easily.

Make the Fans Pay Multiple Times in Owners Mode

If you save a home game mid- game, then quit, and then restart your game, the fans will pay you

LOOK FOR PRIMA STRATEGY GUIDES AT TARGET

twice to watch the game. You can do this multiple times to really rake in the cash during one game.

Monday Night Football Advertising Trick

If you bump your ad budget up for a Monday Night Football s gûme that yov are not in, and then play through the week with good advertising, you will be able to lower your ad budget right before the Monday game and get a lot of expensive advertising through the week without paying for it.

| d

RISE OF THE KASAI

_ | Sony CEA • January 2005

The Basics: If you missed critical hit but commercial

dud The Mark of Kri, no worries—part of this sequel is set 10 years before the original, giving ample backsto-

|| ry for brawny hero Rau. Now he's joined by new

_ | brutes that another player can control online, letting pals hack through the entire adventure cooperatively.

| (A.l. controls secondary characters in offline mode.)

How Was It? The innovative dual-analog-stick combat | is more fun with a teammate. Even better: Rau's psy- | cho-babe sister Tati joins up and “likes to go to bars, get into fights, and sleep around,” says Jay Beard, president of developer Bottle Rocket. Sounds like our | kind of she-warrior. —Crispin Boyer

ا

©

Konami • Spring 2005

| | The Basics: Koji Igarashi, the producer of the

Castlevania series, takes a break from vampirism to deliver this megaviolent action-adventure starring a pissed-off cyborg. Nanobreaker wears its thirst for carnage on its sleeve, offering a mode where it's your goal to spill thousands of gallons of gore. “That's not blood, that's just gallons of red oil," laughs Igarashi. “We know we're getting a Mature rating.”

How Was It? Wanobreaker offers a bloody good time—tense, combo-heavy combat feels a lot like that of Castlevania: Lament of Innocence (PS2), and the creative level design (Lament's big flaw) here seems to be on the up-and-up. —Shane Bettenhausen

Chin

NEO CONTRA

Konami • November 2004

| The Basics: The second PS2 installment in Konami’s

classic run-and-gun shooting series in as many years—only this time, the viewpoint switches from

| | 2D to 3D.

| How Was It? Old-school Contra fans balked upon

hearing about Neo Contra's shift to a 3D perspective,

г | but the level | tried turned out to be much better than

expected. The classic Contra feel remains intact, and the constantly changing viewpoint adds a new layer of excitement to the action. With more weapons,

more stages, апа тоге insane screen-filling bosses,

this one’s got me seriously pumped.

—John Ricciardi

_ | № Dante busts out his finest moves at the... - „== ان‎ discotheque.

|

_ | Capcom e Winter 2004

| | The Basics: Producer Tsuyoshi Tanaka is _ . | well aware that some fans of the sword- swingin’, gun-slingin' demon slayer were | disappointed with the last game. “This is | no Devil May Cry 2," professes Tanaka. “This is a new Dante and he rocks.”

Actually, this is a new, fully customizable Dante; the game includes multiple (expect more than four) upgradeable fighting styles. Tanaka also promises that this prequel will have stronger foes and improved camera perspectives (it shifts

shoulder view at times).

over one hour.

to a Resident Evil 4-style over-the-

How Was It? So far, Tanaka’s right; the short demo features much fiercer ene- mies, and the fighting styles are surpris- ingly varied. I’m also jazzed about Devil May Cry 3's added emphasis on story development, which is exemplified through the game’s cut-scenes totaling — Bryan Intihar

ELECTRONIC GAMING Mo

C

opinionated

guide: ps2

EN

Konami е November 2004

The Basics: This stealth espionage pre- quel may be set in the '60s, but don't expect much peace, love, or happiness. When our boy Snake parachutes into the jungle on a mission to escort a defecting scientist, head shots, broken necks, and

METAL GEAR SOLID 3: SNAKE EATER

explosions are sure to follow. Even the ani- mals aren't safe, since you can capture and feed on the local wildlife to keep your energy up.

How Was It? Just as good as we'd hoped.

А... Metal Gear's versatile and intuitive con- trols felt immediately familiar, with a few welcome tweaks, like using the D-pad to move extra quietly in “sneak mode.”

The highly touted camouflage feature seemed a bit superfluous, but only

because of the impressive arsenal of weapons and gadgets available for demo purposes. Otherwise, this early version displayed the graphical and gameplay pol- ish one expects from MGS. War: This is what it's good for. --Ма/к MacDonald

Square Enix е Winter 2004

The Basics: No one expected Square’s big-haired action-RPG star to return on the PS2, but no one’s complaining, either.

How Was It? The camera has moved behind-the-character, Kingdom Hearts

MUSASHI: SAMURAI LEGEND Ө

style, and the gameplay is now identical to other action-RPGs. But the two-sword slashing style, stolen enemy techniques, and wacky dialogue are keen, and the sharp manga-style graphics should give the game an edge. —Andrew Vestal

| GETAWAY: BLACK MONDAY Ө

Sony CEA • November 2004

The Basics: Head back to the streets of London for what Director Naresh Hirani calls “a much darker” cinematic thriller. Black Monday features three playable characters and multiple endings depend-

How Was It? Black Monday, like the orig- |

inal Getaway, suffers from some annoying technical problems: A lazy camera plagues the on-foot missions (locating enemies is a chore), and the driving con- trols are too sensitive.

—Bryan Intihar | |

76 + ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UPcom

ing on moral choices made along the way.

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opinionated guide: xbox

E We met опе new character, a female bounty hunter named Mira.

a

LucasArts * February 2005

~| The Basics: Take the first Knights of the Old Republic RPG hit and add a brand- new cast of characters, seven unexplored worlds, a fresh story line, more than 60 new feats and Force powers,

| STAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC—THE SITH LORDS

and...um...weather effects, and you've got The Sith Lords in a nutshell. “Rain, light- ning, and waves...really help establish a sense of mood and motion in the levels,” says Rachel Hardwick, LucasArts associ-

ate producer, of the graphical updates to the sequel. Stormy times ahead, Jedi.

How Was It? LucasArts may be touting the new weather effects in The Sith Lords, but a few raindrops and ripples in the water didn’t seal the deal for me. The lack of truly sizzling visuals could keep this sequel from greatness; compared with many games at E3 (especially those alongside The Sith Lords in LucasArts’

own stable), the game's two new environ- ments—a Sith tomb and the planet Telos—looked downright forgettable. Still, the freedom to experience the light and dark sides of the story is what made the first game so gripping, and this one takes that to a new level: Your actions will now influence your party members’ alignment as well. Forty more hours of awesome story-based roleplaying in the Star Wars universe? I'll take it. —dJennifer Tsao

5

+ С.

Ш "It's gong to be suit- ably epic,"'says designer Michael Laidiaw, “and

‘epic’ means ‘long.’”

Microsoft ¢ Spring 2005

\| The Basics: Ancient Chinese secret? Pausing is for babies. Fans of developer BioWare’s virtually patented pauseable combat system (in which players can stop the action at any time to queue up a chain of attacks) will find the developer's

JADE EMPIRE ©

upcoming action-RPG remarkably fast paced. You can still pause to evaluate whom you're up against, but you'll switch fighting styles on the fly and execute all attacks in real time. Make no mistake, though: Story and character development

are still king—you'll have to decide whether you're a good guy, a bad guy, or something in between, and the story will develop accordingly. Is Jade Empire more an RPG or an action game? "We're trying to make it an ideal combo of both,” says designer Michael Laidlaw.

How Was It? So far, Jade Empire delivers interesting characters and dialogue, truly gorgeous environments, and a wide vari-

ety of cool fighting styles. | messed around with a bunch of them, from clas- sic martial-arts attacks like Paralyzing Palm and Legendary Fist to a magical spell that summoned a fiery dragon at my fingertips. Strategy also looks to be important—though this game requires more button-pounding than a usual BioWare RPG, your fists of fury won't automatically win you every battle. | can't wait to see more. —Jennifer Tsao

T8 + ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY « www? TURCom

W “Could you please point те in the direction ofthe ` Burning Man festival?”

а Ч

D00M3 ©

Activision ® Fall 2004

The Basics: It's black as space. You can cut the shadows with a flashlight, searching corners for armor and ammo at the risk of running into a hellknight, or unholster your gun and light the way with hot lead. Whether you arm yourself against the dark or the demons hiding in it, Doom 3 is seriously unsettling.

Like a director’s cut of the decade-old shooter that politicians claimed cracked the nutcases at Columbine, it retells the original game's tale with graphics so good you'd swear developer Vicarious Visions cut a deal with the devil. The old bit about bogeymen overrunning a Martian marine base is so much scarier when state-of-the-art lighting and physics let fiends skitter around in half- lit rooms and a demonic presence hurl chairs through windows without warning.

How Was It? Graphics only go so far, but Doom 3 wouldn't be half as terrifying if it didn’t look so terrific. And even if its gameplay does boil down to more of the same blast-it-before-it-disembowels-you Stuff of days gone by, the trade-off between firing and holding the flashlight turns up the tension. ;

Better yet, co-op play via Xbox Live or System Link (sorry, no splitscreen) lets you and a friend alternate on illumination duty (he finds critters, you cap 'ет). Plus, misery has more company to love in online multiplayer. Only four can frag, but again, it's about waiting for your quarry to lose his wits in a world without light, not shooting the fastest and surviv- ing a few seconds longer in a clusterfrag of crossfire.

—Shawn Elliott

№ Because normal everyday skeletons just aren’t scary anymore.

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com « 79

opinionated guide: xbox

UNREAL CHAMPIONSHIP 2: THE LIANDRI CONFLICT

Microsoft * Fall 2004

The Basics: “Remember when Indy simply shoots the big bad swordsman in Raiders of the Lost Ark?” asks lead designer Cliff Bleszinski. “What if that guy deflect- ed the fire, sending it back into Dr. Jones’ face? Here, he can.” UC2 flips the first-person-shooter series’ script with hand-to-hand fighting (or is that blade to barrel?), graphics to rival Halo 25, and 50 multiplayer maps.

How Was It? Fast paced and instantly playable. | batted one rocket back with a pair of blades, somersaulted over another in third-person perspective, then zoomed in for a head shot at the height of my jump.

—Shawn Elliott

\ wae Ж

MEL © Ubisoft • Fall 2004

The Basics: Brothers is all authenticity as your squad crosses the French countryside, killing Krauts according to proper Army procedure. It's a first-person shooter all right, but you'll have to command one squad to find and fix the enemy with suppressing fire while the other out- flanks and finishes him. Or, as General Patton put it, “Grab "ет by the nose and kick 'em in the ass."

How Was It? Yes, we've already won the war a dozen times, but if Brothers manages to mix Medal of Honor's scale and scripting—think bombers overhead and

tanks battling through the hedgerows—with Full Spectrum Warrior's two fire-team strategy, no one will mind going back to the front. —Shawn Elliott

STAR WARS Q REPUBLIC COMMANDO

LucasArts • Fall 2004

The Basics: Lead a squad of three Jango Fett clones—identical brothers in arms with their own combat specialties—into Episode II and Ill battles. “You can send them to run ahead and act as the quar- terback,” says assistant producer Matt Fillbrandt, “or you can take the lead and they'll back you up."

How Was It? Although | really liked Commando's con- textual squad-command system (point in the direction of a good sniper perch, tap a button, and your sniper will go do his thing), the missions seemed to deliver the same bland stuff we've done in so many shooters. —-Crispin Boyer

Itagaki, says about the Xbox’s take on Ге

Tecmo % September 2004

The Basics: After an extended (and Xtreme) beach volleyball vacation, the Dead or Alive gals return to their true calling—catfighting. Ultimate bundles the antiquated Sega Saturn version of Dead or Alive with a reworked and gussied-up

DEAD OR ALI

iteration of the PlayStation 2’s Dead or Alive 2: Hardcore, infusing both with full Xbox Live action.

How Was it? "It's more hardcore than Hardcore,” the game's creator, Tomonobu

Dead or Alive 2. A hands-on online fistfest revealed Itagaki to be telling the truth. With four players brawling online (two fighting and two watching the action), the game ran beautifully. Hiccups and stut- ters be damned—there were none, and all of the fighters competed on brand- new stages and performed cool never- before-seen attacks. Ultimately, it was online joy. —Greg Orlando

80» ELECTRONIC GAMING. MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

KAMEO: ELEMENTS OF rower

Microsoft ® January 2005

The Basics: Hotshot developer Rare’s first Xbox title since the very silly Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Kameo has you donning fairy wings and assuming the forms of various monsters in an ultracolorful adventure. Oh, it’s also very silly.

How Was It? | wasn’t crazy about the strictly kids’- Stuff visuals (the game began years ago as a GameCube project), but Kameo grew on me with its unique character-morphing gameplay—you swap forms every few seconds to fight enemies, clear chasms, grapple surfaces, etc. —Crispin Boyer

Ta.

FAR CRY: INSTINCTS (©

Ubisoft • Fall 2004

The Basics: Get ready for a tropical vacation where sünburn is the least of your worries—Far Cry attempts to bring the PC stealth-survival-shooter hit home with online action and a multiplayer map editor (maps can be traded via Xbox Live).

How Was It? Something tragic must have happened on the way from PC to Xbox, because at its core, Instincts is rotting: Sluggish play, cardboard cutout vegetation (the game doesn't look nearly as good as the screenshots would indicate), and dim-witted enemy A.l. make this island anything but gaming par- adise. Ubisoft, give this one some immediate attention. —Bryan Intihar

Microsoft * Winter 2004

The Basics: Microsoft's entry in the crowded racing- simulator field has secretly been in development for more than two years. And its 60-plus carmaker list has serious triple-A talent, starting with Ferrari, BMW, and traditionally difficult-to-license Porsche.

How Was It? What | played felt very promising, and I'll be surprised if its online options don't leave Gran Turismo 4's in the dust. Like GT, it'll also feature a mixture of real-world and fantasy tracks (including the Nürburgring), although judging from my time on the wheel, | hope Microsoft cranks up the sense of speed. To 10, if not 11.

—Demian Linn

CONKER: LIVE & RELOADED ©

Microsoft * March 2005

The Basics: Multiplayer murder gets silly—teddy bear Nazis and freedom-fighting squirrels wage goofy war on Xbox Live with blood, tears, and stuffing. No friends? Traipse through the cornball single-player platforming bits, previously seen on Nintendo 64.

How Was It? We love cartoon violence and humor as much as the next guy, but squirrel giblets aside, Conker doesn’t stand out in the crowded trenches of online multiplayer shooters. Everything from the sol- dier classes to the obligatory vehicles screams stan- dard-issue combat ration. —Justin Speer

РАА VU Games • Winter 2004

The Basics: Vietnam-themed first-person shooters aren't exactly uncommon these days, but this one hails from the guys behind the well-received Medal of

Honor: Allied Assault. Expect 16-man Xbox Live may- hem, brutal A.I., and both jungle and urban combat.

How Was It? Valor succeeds at conveying the mad- dening chaos of combat with sharp visuals and boom- ing sound: Wading through a rice paddy while a hail of bullets whizzes past your ears was enough to make me consider deserting. The profane chatter of your comrades is all but lost beneath mortar explosions and the sharp crack of assault rifles; the atmosphere

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Microsoft * Fall 2004 The Basics: Old-school arcade veterans will feel right

at home with the fast cars, exotic locations, branching paths, and an easily scared hottie riding shotgun.

How Was It? Personally, Га rather cruise by the beach in my candy-apple-red Ferarri than tweak gear ratios in Gran Turismo. Crisp, lovely visuals, rockin’ remixed OutRun tunes, and precise (but still arcadey) controls make this a winner. Sure, some more innovation besides online play and a mission mode would have been appreciated, but the thrill of hitting 150 mph to impress your lady friend should be enough to appease arcade speed freaks.

—Greg Ford

makes you ache for cover. —dJustin Speer

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY © www.1UP.com е 81

(=) opinionated

guide: gamecube

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Capcom * Winter 2004

The Basics: Survival-horror gets a shot in the arm...or the shoulder, or the face—anywhere you want in this radical shooter-based rethinking of the Resident Evil formula. Precision aiming is a snap thanks to a new over-the-shoulder cam-

RESIDENT EVIL 4 ©

era view (similar to when you draw your weapon in Splinter Cell), which should come in handy since you aren't fighting those same ol’ slow, stupid zombies anymore. These new enemies run, carry weapons (chain saws, knives, sickles),

and even dodge attacks. Also, look for all that combat to get even tougher, since you'll be busy protecting the president's defenseless daughter during the second half of the game. It’s an intense baby-sit- ting gig—she's constantly in danger of being recaptured, unable to get over obstacles without your help, and often in the way of your bullets.

How Was It? Frighteningly good. Though

it sticks to the series’ outdated “tank” controls (no strafing; push Left or Right to turn, forward to move ahead), RE4 plays remarkably well. | had no prob- lem—and quite a bit of fun—pulling off head shots and nailing bad guys in the

hand to disarm them. It doesn’t hurt that this is one of the best-looking games I've ever seen for any system. The gritty graphics are crisp and realistic but always smooth. — Mark MacDonald

Nintendo ® Spring 2005

The Basics: Playing Nintendo's Donkey Konga music game with bongo drums makes sense, but brave beatniks can use | the power of percussion to run, jump,

~| punch, and swing in this wacko romp starring Nintendo's archetypal ape.

giant DK at the bottom left helps teach you how your т beats affect gameplay.

DONKEY KONG JUNGLE BEAT

How Was It? Crazy but true: Slapping drums to run and jump while clapping to punch transforms platforming into giggly performance art. Stylish visuals and cre- ative level design further draw you in to this bizarre fun. —Shane Bettenhausen

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The Basics: Oh man, where to begin... See, there are these two Japanese war- lords clashing on the battlefield, which just happens to be, um, a pinball table.

Nintendo * Spring 2005

How Was it? Mixing real-time strategy

and pinball seems insane, but the offbeat blend actually works—once you get a handle on the complex controls, it's a hel- luva pinball game. Plus, a friend can barig the Donkey Konga bongos to inspire your troops. Really. | —Shane Bettenhausen

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opinionated guide: gamecube

|

b

Nintendo е November 2004

The Basics: Namco takes a crack at this storied space-shooting franchise as the series returns to its arcade-style roots after 2002's Adventures spin-off.

How Was It? Much better than it looked

STARFOX ©

a year ago, but we're still a bit skeptical. The single-player mode now features on- foot stages, but these seem out of place for a Star Fox game. Space combat is much more enjoyable but not quite up to Star Fox 64 quality yet. —John Ricciardi

№ Bodies аге disposable...you can always find another suitable meat bag to inhabit.

ST

GEIST ©

Nintendo • Fall 2004

The Basics: Get all possessive as a spooky ghost soldier out for revenge in this puzzle-packed first-person shooter.

How Was It? The visuals and control still need work, but the concept is stellar. Our

Nintendo October 2004

The Basics: Mario and co. return in this goofball sequel to the hilarious N64 RPG.

How Was It? PM2 feels an awful lot like the first game, just with much better graphics and a new twist to the battle

PAPER MARIO2 ©

system—audience participation. Battles take place on a stage, with your perfor- mance affecting whether the crowd tries to help you or hurt you. If the final script is as funny as last time, this'll be another must-buy for sure. —John Ricciardi

favorite moment: haunting a bowl of dog food and exploding in a very downtrod- den-looking canine's face. Once a victim is scared, you can take control of its body, leaping into mice, men, and even security cameras. —Justin Speer

| ^| The Basics: Nintendo's venerable turn- based strategy-RPG comes to GameCube...as a real-time-strategy action game? The name’s the same, but the genre, developer, and look are all

NJ

ADVANCE WARS :

Nintendo Spring 2005

UNDER FIRE CD

How Was It? It plays more like Pikmin than a traditional RTS, which is good. And the ability to control units directly while ordering others adds some wel- come spice. About that character art, though...ugh. —Andrew Vestal

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TRONIC GAMÎ IONTHLY © n

startlingly new.

е

W The Dark World looks kind of like a. Yes album.

Nintendo • November 2004

The Basics: Gamers may wonder how anything could be better than the first Metroid Prime; fortunately, developer Retro Studios has a few ideas. First, this first-person-adventure sequel introduces a new planet, Aether, split into light and dark worlds—each an echo of the other. If you think that sounds similar to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Super NES), you're more right than you know; Kensuke Tanabe, who invented the mechanic for that game, is producing this one. The Phazon-fueled Dark World is no mere palette swap; instead, the smooth techni- cal lines of a laboratory give way toa dark, biomechanical hive. Expect plenty of switching between the worlds as you solve puzzles.

The Dark World features a new charac- ter: Dark Samus. Possibly connected to the

METROID PRIME 2: ECHOES

first game's lost Phazon suit, Dark Samus is more than just an enemy "boss"—she is a true adversary for Samus, with a com- plex relationship revealed as the game progresses. The dualistic motif continues with the weaponry: Samus can get the Dark Beam and Light Beam. As in GameCube shooter /karuga, Dark enemies are susceptible to the Light Beam and vice versa. Samus can also find an echo visor that lets her “see” sound and go all spin- crazy with the return of her Screw Attack.

How Was It? Single player was much like the first game. Trust me, this is not a bad thing. The four-player deathmatch was straightforward enough, except for one thing—ball mode. Retro sees the ability to roll into a ball as the multiplayer mode’s unique characteristic. Players can’t fire

from ball mode, but they can use it to break another player’s lock-on, make a fast getaway, and use otherwise inacces- sible pathways and launch pads. Rumors have it Retro has more Versus modes

planned for the final дате... ёф —Andrew Vestal

cover story: psp vs. ds

MANO- -MANO

Two new portable powerhouses, the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP, prepare for hand-to-hand combat

by Mark MacDonald & the EGM All-Stars

$ Don King might say, it’s a fight

of epicurean proportionality:

Nintendo, the seasoned veteran and 15-year reigning champion о? hand- held videogames, versus scrappy up-and- comer Sony, the unquestioned leader of: the home console market. Both have new. handheld systems on the way—Nintendo’s DS this fall, Sony's PSP early next year—

86 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www-tUP.com:

and, outside of similar wireless-network- ing abilities, the two machines could hard- ly be more different. The DS uses carts, the PSP uses optical discs. The DS has a touch pad, the PSP has an analog stick. The DS has two screens, the PSP plays movies and music. The DS is all about innovation, while the PSP is about making the home experience portable.

Some people point to these differences and say the two machines won't really compete with each other And in some respects, they have a point—whatever happens, the audience for portable games is bound to grow far beyond the typical Game Boy crowd. But then again, A-list developers have only so much time and money to spend making portable games;

and gamers have only So, much time and money to spend playing them (not to men- tion only so much space in their back- packs and carry-on bags), In other words, most of us will be buying only one hand- held system in the next year. “There've been many boxers to enter the ring,” quoth Don King, “but there’s only one king,” So. which will it be? >

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Imagine «3 No borders. No boundaries. No body. — Major Motoko Kusanagi and the officers of aoe

Section 9 are highly skilled and trained to deal with criminal activity in both the real and online worlds, but when the lines between two realities collide, a series of events will set in motion their most chilling and dangerous case of all. The -

fight for the future of humanity begins now. >

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cover story: psp vs. ds

Dual Screens

The DS's most obvious unique feature

is its two three-inch backlit (thank goodness) LCD screens. Most of the

demo games we saw had one screen doing 3D graphics while the other dis-

played a 2D map or menu, but Nintendo says the two can be com-

p bined into one giant display as well.

In this corner...

wo screens, one of which is also a

touch-sensitive pad. A built-in micro- phone. Two cartridge slots. Wireless capabili- ties. Though some joke about its resem- blance to Nintendo's own ancient line of Game & Watch handhelds, the DS is like nothing gaming—portable or not—has ever seen. Which, as Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto explains, is precisely the point.

“With all of these features and capabili-

ties, the DS [isn't] a system that just takes games we've seen before and adds new technologies or better graphics. It's a system

Many noticed the DS's resemblance to Nintendo's old Game & Watch handhelds.

TIME 87207099

Boldly going where no handheld has gone before

where we can bring new styles of games that we've never seen before.”

Of course, Miyamoto is quick to add, every DS title doesn't need to completely redefine gaming. After all, the system also includes the standbys: regular ol’ buttons (four on the front, one on each shoulder, plus Select and Start) and a familiar square-shaped D-pad.

Touch Pad

The lower screen offers PDA-like touch-pad capabilities. Some uses we saw included grabbing and moving cards or different items around in your inventory, steering and shooting in а first-person shooter, choosing from different playable characters by tap- ping on them, and typing on a virtual keyboard. You can use your finger or (for greater accuracy) a stylus to inter-

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of gameplay that's going to be possible on [Sony's PSP] is going to be possible on the DS, while the reverse is not true.”

Speaking of the PSP, what does Nintendo think of the competition? Apparently, they don't. “We haven't paid [the PSP] much thought, to tell you the truth," says Tezuka. "We don't expect it to compete with the DS,

Fightin’ words: "

»

—Nintendo General Manager Takashi Tezuka

"Just because there are two screens doesn't mean [all games] have to use two screens," says Miyamoto. "And every game [doesn't need] to be wireless compatible, [or] use voice recognition, [or even] the touch pad." The idea, stresses Nintendo General Manager Takashi Tezuka, is that developers have plen- ty of options to innovate if they want to— options the other guys can't offer. "Any style

because they represent two very different styles of gameplay."

Besides, Nintendo's got enough to think about in the few months leading up to the DS's release at end of the year. Like how much its new system will cost. Or what date it'll go on sale. Or the exact final hard- ware design (still being tweaked, with only minor alterations like an added slot to hold

Microphone

The small mic built into the front of the DS could be used to talk to your friends over wireless multiplayer games or for voice-recognition-based titles like Hey You, Pikachu! (Nintendo 64) and Seaman (Dreamcast).

GBA Compatibility

The DS features two cartridge slots: one on top for the smaller DS carts and one on the bottom for Game Boy Advance games. Though you can play all GBA games on the DS, older Game Boy and Game Boy Color games will not work on it.

VITAL STATS

Release Date: Official: By the end of 2004 Our guess: November 2004

И Price:

Official: “Over $99, less than $300” Our guess: $150

Media: % DS carts аге roughly half the physical size of GBA games— they can hold 1 gigabit (1/14 the capacity of the PSP’s media) Plays DS and GBA games

Other: * Up to 16 players can network within

a range of at least 30 feet (or more, depending on location) or connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi * Includes a standard headphone jack (woo hoo!) and rechargeable battery * Won't work with GBA-GameCube link cable for "connectivity."

the touch-screen stylus expected). Even the System's real name hasn't been announced; Nintendo DS, like Nitro before it, is merely an internal code name. The new moniker will be announced soon, but you can cross one famous brand name off the list of possibilities. "We're not going to Call it Game Boy Something," says Tezuka, “[because] the DS is not an expansion of the Game Boy. It’s an entirely new system with entirely new capabilities.”

Nintendo has shown just a handful of actual DS games, and many of them only in video form. In addition to the following titles,

however, they did show a dozen or so tech-

nical demos, each demonstrating

different ideas for how developers might use the DS. In one, you could carve a spin- ning piece of wood by using the stylus on

the touch screen; in another, you controlled various levers and gauges on a submarine

by grabbing and sliding them. A particularly interesting demo from Namco had the play-

er use the stylus to sketch a Pac-Man, which would then come to life and chomp its way across the screen. Here are the few games we got to see:

ANIMAL CROSSING DS

Just admit you loved Animal Crossing. We all did. The bizarre, unclassifiable GameCube adventure of friendship, insect collecting, house decorating, and wiggling phallic music boxes kept even the most testosterone-filled gamers entranced for months—no joke. What we saw of this new DS version didn’t display any new gameplay elements, but the simple addi- tion of a touch screen opens up a lot of exciting possibilities. Use it to type out messages on a virtual keyboard, design fabric patterns, or act as an inventory screen for a quick ’n’ easy way to drag items onto your character.

The DS's wireless multiplayer capabil- ities should promote multiplayer happi- ness, too. Imagine jumping online and downloading new outfits or songs, visit- ing your friends’ villages, or trading let- ters or cute collectible crap without all that messy memory-card swapping.

METROID PRIME HUNTERS

Although it may sound like the most exciting DS game announcement on paper, our hands-on time with a very early demo of this new Metroid left us with a bittersweet aftertaste. It definitely has the most impressive graphics we've seen on the DS—surprisingly smooth, with sharp environments that effectively mimic those of the Cube’s Metroid Prime. The problem is the ridiculous control scheme: You slide on the touch screen to look around, tapping where you want to shoot (your other hand uses the D-pad to move and the shoulder but- ton to lock onto targets).

The simplistic multiplayer mode left us a bit cold as well, and we hear the single-player game will be closer to it (à la the solo mode in shooters like Unreal Championship) than a typical Metroid adventure. Let’s hope Hunters changes dramatically before release.

5 The top screen is used for a simple map that displays opponents and power-ups.

Plays all old GBA games, which gives it a huge library of favorites right out of the gate

Cart-based games mean no loading times and a long battery life Nintendo has ruled the handheld market for more than 15 years, so they know it better than anyone Nintendo makes the best first-party games in the business, and a few million people will buy anything to play a new Pokémon game

It's possible to play multiplayer games across multiple DSes with only one cart of the game

Front and shoulder buttons are too small (and they don’t have the same satisfying give of the GBA's buttons), and the lack of an analog stick is a step backward for 3D gaming Cart-based games also mean worse sound and less storage space for things like speech and video

Big and, well, pretty damn ugly— won't win any beauty contests, unless those "minor tweaks" become major The touch screen seems prone to scratches, especially when you're rub- bing a stylus over it all day (Nintendo says it is working on a solution)

cover story: psp us. ds

SUPER MARIO 64X4

Look familiar? This update of the inno- vative N64 platformer doesn't appear to deviate much from the original, except for two new twists: You can switch between four characters on the fly (each with different abilities) or race and fight your way to collect the most stars in the added multiplayer mode. The demo felt solid, but we missed controlling via an analog stick.

(CONT.)

MARIO KART DS

Forget the double-team antics of the Cube's Double Dash!!—this DS Kart powerslides back to a time of simpler racing, a la the old N64 game. The only difference here is that the map, posi- tions, and other info is displayed on the second screen, plus the lure of eight- player wireless multiplayer. Anything else new that we noticed? Nope. But that doesn’t make us want it any less.

PICTOCHAT

Voted Most Likely to Be Confiscated by the Teacher, PictoChat is more of a high-tech way of passing notes than a game. Use the stylus to type on the mini-keyboard or draw freehand, then beam your vulgar scribblings to a pal or pals via Wi-Fi. Messages from other “players” (up to 16) appear on the top screen, and you can then modify their missives and send 'em right back.

WARIOWARE DS

It's simple. It's sweet. It's a gaggle of timing and twitch tests for the gamer with a short attention span. WarioWare DS's micro-diversions were the best use of the DS's stylus we saw—wave it like a sword against the touch screen and slash through falling veg- gies before they hit the floor, put loose change in a coin purse, or give that itch on Wario's back a good scratchin’.

Le

л

ОТНЕК ?

* Dragon Ball Z (Banpresto)

Dynasty Warriors (Koei)

* Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles (Square Enix)

* The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo)

* Mega Man Battle Network (Capcom)

* Need for Speed Underground (EA)

* Nintendogs (Nintendo)

* Sonic DS (Sega)

NEW SUPER MARIO BROS.

Mario: Italian, works a blue-collar job, into mushrooms, yada, yada—not such a mys- terious guy. This new DS adventure, however, is one game Mario maker Shigeru Miyamoto isn't saying much about. We're not even sure when it's coming out (though since it wasn't even playable, being a DS launch title seems unlikely). It looks like a classic 2D side-scroller—warp pipes, coins, fireballs, all the old favorites. Except this time, Mario and his enemies are in 3D, he knows moves from newer adventures (such as a quick-reverse superjump), and enemies can consume 'shrooms to live large. No problemo: Mario can grow as titanic as the screen and rampage through entire levels. The DS's second screen wasn't used in the video we saw, but then Miyamoto did tell us some games wouldn't use all of the handheld's fancy special features.

RINGSIDE COMMENTARY

irst impressions of the Nintendo DS from the EGM staff:

Maric | get the feeling most people here are hyped on the DS. What 1 want to know is, where are the games that really make use of the dual displays? They need to show why a touch screen is such a brilliant idea.

Shane: РИ admit that the functionality of the double screen and touch panel hasn’t been fully fleshed out yet, but nearly every developer | spoke with can't wait to experiment on it, and it's going to be cheaper than PSP. Plus, wanna bet that nearly every Nintendo first-party game on it is fantastic? Shoe: It's all about the potential. The DS's design is fundamentally unique, which means it'll give us new gaming experiences we've never seen or even thought of before.

Demian: Yeah, but touch screens aren't exactly new. How many good PDA games have you played? The only real- ly new thing here is the twin screens, and though it's early, | haven't seen them used to mind-blowing effect yet. So | don't have to hit Start to check out the map? Thanks for that. I’m more excited about the Wi-Fi, so far.

Shoe: That's a horrible example—true career game designers aren't busy thinking of ways to take advantage of a PDA's functions. But get a DS in the hands of someone like Hideo Kojima (Boktai) or Shigeru Miyamoto (Mario), and we'll see some innovative magic. Demian: Oh! The dreaded Miyamoto card, like a punch to the gut.

Mark: Launch is just a few months away and everyone is still talking about “potential” and not actual games—that's a bad sign. Also, DS has no price, no release date, barely any games—it doesn’t even have a name or final hardware design. Anyone else think it’s going to be delayed? Shane: | think it will make it out by Christmas. Nintendo isn't afraid to launch a system with two games. See: Nintendo 64.

Shoe: Look at the PlayStation 1. It did- n’t launch with anything innovative, but it had enough potential to make it one of the most successful systems ever. The DS doesn’t have to show its hand now. It has plenty of time before it’s released, and it has years after that to show us what it’s made of.

Crispin: The DS sure looks clunky, though. Now the PSP—that's a sexy- looking system.

Jen: You know Nintendo made it huge and clunky now so a year after it comes out they can make us buy the sleeker DS-SP, at only twice the price! >

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©2004 Ubisoft Entertainment. All Rights Reserved. Splinter Cell, Sam Fisher, Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow, the Soldier Icon, Ubisoft, ubi.com, and the Ubisoft logo are trademarks of Ubisoft Entertainment in the US. and/or other countries. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Online play requires

ternet connection, Network Adaptor (for PlayStation и BI S [« | ЕТ hn 2) and Memory Card (8MB) (for PlayStation 2) (each sold separately). The Online icon is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Software platform logo TM and © IEMA 2003.

cover story: psp vs. ds

№ The UMD drive is on the back.

VITAL STATS

Release Date: Official: Spring 2005 Our guess: March 2005

Price: Offi For what we offer, it'll be a good price”

Our guess: $300

Media:

* New UMDs (Universal Media Discs) are about 2.5 inches in diameter. They can hold up to 1.868 (14 times the DS’ media) and will be used for games, movies, and music

Other:

Wi-Fi functionality will allow PSP users to network with other PSPs and connect to the Internet for online gaming or other applications at Wi-Fi hot spots

USB 2.0 port, infrared data port, and Memory Stick slot

* Planned accessories include an external battery pack and head- phones with remote commander and microphone

* Switches include brightness control, sound mode, and wireless on/off

92 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

+

Control

All the standard PlayStation buttons are here (only two shoulder buttons, though), plus a D-pad and a single ana-

log stick underneath it. Opinions on the analog stick ranged from excellent to merely decent, with a few people com- plaining that it didn’t have the range of motion of PS2's DualShock controller.

And in this corner...

ar

SELECT

Big Screen

The first thing you notice about the PSP is just how huge its 4.3- inch screen is. The picture quali-

ty looked great on the demo units we saw playing video, and the 16:9 ratio means that movies won't need to be cropped or converted to pan and scan.

SONY PSP

Can Sony do for portables what they’ve done for

home consoles?

f there is indeed a handheld title fight

brewing, someone forgot to tell Kaz Hirai. Ask the CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America if he’s worried about launching his company’s new PlayStation Portable (PSP) early next year, months after Nintendo's new DS handheld, and he shrugs. “They can [launch the DS] before us, after us, on the same day—that's a decision for Nintendo. But we've seen all kinds of permu- tations in the past: Saturn was out before [the PlayStation], Nintendo 64 after, Dreamcast before [the PS2], Xbox after... whatever they like." Hirai may be talking about release dates, but his list of defeated home systems has a clear implication: We've beat 'em before, and we'll beat 'em again.

The philosophy behind the PSP isn't to

redefine gaming like the Nintendo DS; it's to re-create it, only this time on the go—to "bring the modern 3D console experience to a mobile platform," as Hirai puts it. The sys- tem's design reflects this goal, sticking close to Sony's home controllers (with Triangle, Circle, Square, X, and two shoulder buttons, a D-pad, and even a small analog stick) to ease the transition between PS2 and PSP games

for both game developers and players. The system can also take advantage of online gaming, with Wi-Fi wireless support that lets

the system connect to the Internet or network

with other PSPs for multiplayer. And even though Hirai acknowledges that

START

(Actual Size)

Expansion

A USB 2.0 port allows the PSP to connect to all kinds of other devices—digital cameras, computers, even your PS2. Sony was already

showing prototype devices that would inter- face through the port, including keyboards, cameras, and a GPS. Game saves and other data can be stored and transferred on Memory Sticks that fit into a slot on the side.

devices besides the PSP.

Plus, Sony is already hinting at “other entertainment applications” for the PSP, including online music downloads. Other pos- sibilities include Web browsing, PDA-like functions (appointment book, calendar, etc.),

Fightin’ words: “[The Nintendo DS] seems like an extension of what they've done—Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, then DS—which tells me it's more for a

lower age demographic"

—Sony CEA СЕО Kaz Hirai

“games—great games—are the most important application [for the PSP],” Sony's

new handheld is about much more than play-

ing Metal Gear on the bus. The PSP’s disc- based UMD media can hold high-quality audio or movies at near-DVD quality. Sony is

anticipating that this new format will become а standard, eventually incorporated into other

and connecting the PSP to your PS2 or PC to swap data. Who knows? With the PSP’s infrared data port, perhaps you could even use it as a programmable universal remote for your home-theater system. “I would call the PSP a handheld videogame system first,” Hirai says, “but with a lot of different capabil- ities to expand it beyond gaming.”

PSP GAMES

Although we've seen plenty of video of dif- Metal Gear Ac!d) to be released. Hence the ing that while some games were running the games will look like on PSP. So take the ferent PSP games in motion, Sony would poor quality of the screenshots you see on PSP development hardware, other images on the next couple pages with a reportedly not allow screens of any games here, which were captured from a record- games were actually modified or straight grain of salt (as if they weren't already (except, interestingly enough, those for ing of a display monitor. It's also worth not- PS2 footage, or "approximations" of what grainy enough).

ta LETT фоло/ояв GP

METAL GEAR ACID

To be honest, when we realized the PSP edition of our favorite stealth-espionage series wouldn't be an action game, we started to wonder if Ac/d was a reference to all the drugs they were doing over at Konami. "It's more like a command-based, turn- based [strategy] game,” says Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima, who is only working on the project in a supervisory producer role. As we wept openly at this disappointing news, Kojima attempted to reassure us. “There'll definitely be a story, weapons, items, and stuff like that [in Ac/d]. Probably most of the characters from MGS 1, 2, and 3 will be in it.” We continued crying. "The guys

Я working on Ac!d are a young team, so it's going to be a stylish Metal Gear game, unlike my games [laugh]." We weren't laughing, but Kojima did give us at least something to look forward to.

“Visually, it's going to look as good as Metal Gear on the PS2.”

% Ж ES E: 2” E

2001200 | TALES OF ETERNIA

< Weaknesses:

* Disc-based media also means shorter battery life, although Sony claims the system will last around 10 hours when playing games, eight hours playing music, or two-and-a-half hours playing movies

Will it break? Sony doesn’t have the best track record as far as dependable hardware, and optical disc drives tend to bust easily

* Cost: Although Sony hasn’t mentioned anything about price, most analysts are expecting it to come in at around $300 when it first goes on sale, with the price then decreasing gradually >

< Strengths:

* Disc-based media can hold entire movies or excellent-quality audio and costs a fraction of the price of cartridges. This also means better audio and video for use in games

* Analog stick is a must for many 3D games, as experience with the very first PlayStation controller taught us all

* Gorgeous design: Sleek and sexy, the PSP. will be an easy sell to the gadget fetishists

* Wide third-party support—as with their con- soles, Sony isn't trying to make all the games themselves. Some big-name third-party game makers are already on board, including EA and Konami with a Metal Gear game

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com • 93

cover story: psp us. ds

PSP GAMES г:

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DARKSTALKERS CHRONICLES

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WIPEOUT PURE

OTHER PSP GAMES:

* Armored Core: Formula Front (From Software)

* Devil May Cry (Capcom)

• Fighting Spirits (Sony)

* Gran Turismo 4: Mobile (Sony)

* Hot Shots Golf (Sony)

* Need for Speed Underground (EA)

* NFL Street (EA) * NBA Street (EA) * NHL FaceOff 2005 (Sony) >

* Syphon Filter: Logan’s Shadow (Sony)

* Tales of Eternia (Namco) * Tiger Woods PGA Tour (EA) * Viewtiful Joe (Capcom)

94» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com.

RINGSIDE COMMENTARY

First impressions of the Sony PSP from the EGM staff:

Mark: I’ve heard people dis the PSP as "just more power,” like that’s a bad thing. The GBA was "just more power.’ Besides, there has never been a popu- lar handheld that could do 3D games justice, much less also play movies and music. That’s more than enough to get me excited.

Shoe: You would get excited at just that? Sounds like the PS1, when things Started going 3D and everyone was all geeked about it. | think in the begin- ning, we'll see a lot of games designed more to show off that a portable can do 3D. We won't see the really good Stuff until later on. I’m more hyped on the PSP's physical design—it's a beaut, with a nice, large, clear screen. Shane: It’s definitely a beautiful machine, but | fully expect all this snazziness to come at a hefty price: $300. And that price will sting even more when the thing starts skipping and/or locking up after six months, Mark: True, we've all been through our share of shoddy Sony game hardware. Shane: Still, I’m sure PSP will be а success, although | wish we'd seen some killer original apps. Turn-based Metal Gear looked dumb, and newish versions of Medieval, Twisted Metal, and Ridge Racer had me feeling like | was trapped back in 1997.

Crispin: Shane’s got a point. Think of all the good handheld games you've played—Nintendo made most of 'em. Will developers who've never worked on portable gaming suddenly give it its due on the PSP?

Mark: Actually, | think that’s a big plus for the PSP. Nintendo handhelds have always offered only Nintendo games or kids’ licenses because of the way they do business and the cart format. With the PSP, we might finally get some games for the Vice City- and Madden- playing wider audience.

Shawn: Back to the whole movies and music bit. Who’s gonna buy an extra copy of their favorite film on an odd- ball format like UMD? Plus, the battery will die long before the One Ring falls into Mount Doom.

Demian: Not if you cart around the external battery pack, but I’m with you on the UMD—what is Sony's fascina- tion with trying to start up new media formats? Looks like PSP will have some other, cooler peripherals, too, like the GPS attachment. For when you get lost in the woods.

Crispin: Or a damn cover for the screen. Meantime, I’m gonna have to keep mine wrapped in a sock. >

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cover story: psp vs. ds

“I'm really interested in the Nintendo DS. It

lend itself too well to action games, though. With Castlevania, | couldn’t see myself targeting enemies with a stylus. You could maybe move around with your finger, but that would make the

screen really greasy! Or imagine some kid eating food and then playing! So yes, it’s very interesting, but it might be difficult to make something that really use:

—Castlevania's Koji Igarashi

EXPERT OPINION

The biggest names in game development share their thoughts and plans for the DS and PSP

“Nintendo has asked me to make [Super Monkey Gall for the Nintendo 05], and I'm

interested in making it."

—Super Monkey Ball's Toshihiro Nagoshi

«Рт really impressed with the DS touch panei technology hope І can do something with it. But I’m not sure if the PSP and DS are apt for Silent Hill. The ideal gameplay environ- ment for playing Silent Hill = is in your room, alone, in the dark. If you were playing it ona portable, your 4 friends might % interrupt you. If it * wereagame ы like Silent Hill < Shooting, then it might be a differ- ent story.”

—Silent Hill's Akira Yamaoka

“My first impression of PSP was that it had really awe- some graphics and that users would love to have [GameCube RPG] Baten Kaitos on it, but | fear two issues: battery life and the price. With the DS, the double screen and touch panel are very unique. A card-based game like Baten Kaitos [would work well with] the touch panel.”

—Baten Kaitos’ Shinji Noguchi

“I would like [the Nintendo DS game we announced, called Project Rub] to take advantage of many of the DS features. It’s a new genre...otherwise, it’s all secret. [The PSP] is very interesting hardware, апат love all platforms. | like to innovate and experiment. So, I’m thinking of creating more titles that will () () be exclusive and use that system’s features. Chu Chu Rocket would be a suitable game to play with the [DS’] touch panel. Nintendo has actually 4 asked me about making a Chu Chu Rocket for the

05, so that would be a nice ¥ project. But | can’t say whether or not I will do it.”

—Sonic's Yuji Naka

(Editor's note: Mr. Igarashi later told us that he does plan on ‘making a new Castlevania for the DS, with a gameplay system similar to Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (GBA), once he can figure out how to make use of the touch screen.)

"| see a lot of potential in the Nintendo DS, but i'm not sure if | know how to get all those features to work!”

wi —Neo Contra's Nobuya Nakazato

«рт interested in both [PSP and Nintendo DS], since they are two totally dif-

ferent systems. With the DS, I believe that it would be very hard to utilize the touch panel as part of the game. It might serve as the interface for typing, but it would be difficult to use it for gameplay.”

—Final Fantasy XII's Yasumi Matsuno

“[My current challenge is] to make the best portable game. | asked myself which was better: PSP or Nintendo DS? Everyone is talking about that. | automatically judged, based on my past playing history: Nintendo. There is no other way. It will be Nintendo DS. 1 don't know yet [if | will use the touch panel and both screens], but I will give you secret information: There is a big fan of Nintendo working with me...my daughter!" —Dead or Alive and Ninja Gaiden's Tomonobu Itagaki

“With the PSP, you can listen to music, watch movies, play датез—1 think it’s going to be а very stylish thing

Too early to pick a winner? Of course. Any system lives and dies by the games it plays, and we still have no idea what the DS and PSP launch line-ups will be like (much less the quality of their titles down the road). But we weren't about to let that stop us from forming our own half-baked opinions. Asked to vote which handheld they were more excited to own for them- selves, based on what they've seen and heard so far, the eight members of the EGM staff responded five to three in favor of the PSP.

96 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

that young people will enjoy. It'll be the next Walkman. | think the young people now will buy it and enjoy it, because young people now are into cell phones. With the DS, it introduces a new [input device], the touch sensor, and two screens. |

think it'll provide enjoyment and fun that only

a video game console can. And [the two sys-

tems are] targeted toward totally different audiences, so | think that’s good. [I probably

won’t make] a Metal Gear Solid game for DS, because | think the DS is for a

younger audience. With the PSP, І think it’s the perfect audience—that's why we're making Metal Gear Ac!d” #%

—Metal Gear Solid's Hideo Kojima

THE FINE-TUNING WILL BE COMPLETE THIS WINTER.

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DIRECTORY

98 DRIV3R 100 MLB SlugFest: Loaded 100 NCAA Football 2005 101 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

101 Mega Man Anniversary Collection 102 Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy

102 Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow

103 Karaoke Revolution Volume 2

104 Smash Court Tennis Pro Tournament 2 104 Way of the Samurai 2

Don't let the.

Mature rating fool Z e you—DRIVSR is «1199

— bloodless and

hookerless.

7 Кем), (Жей t HAI MESE.

PS2/XB

KEVIN: So far, most attempts to tell a serious story within a Grand Theft Auto-style play mechanic have fallen flat on their faces. True Crime came the closest, but then it got all goofy near the end; The Getaway stayed on target plotwise, but the game was akin to watching the paint dry on your Geo Metro. That's why DRIV3R, even after the long wait, is a remarkable surprise—it adds a big pinch of GTA to the proven Driver formula, but avoids all the

potholes its brethren hit full on.

As a road-mayhem sim, DRIV3R is decent. The cities of Miami, Nice, and Istanbul are immacu- lately re-created, and developer Reflections threw a trunkload of cute details into the driving scenes, like realistic shadows and cars that rip apart upon, er, detonation. Though both console

98 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY * www.1UP.com

DRIV3R

But you can call it Driv-three-er

versions slow down during busy moments, DRIVSR is still the best-looking game in the genre. Reflections also included a story mode with a weird plot (why is protagonist Tanner killing hundreds of people—including cops—just to catch some car thieves?) but some incredible production values: Every cut-scene drips wi

style, and every action scene is backed up with an intense movielike soundtrack.

The fact that DRIV3R is such a frustration-free game ultimately makes it a short-lived one—the story’s over quickly, and there's little incentive to play for much longer. Even so, this is the first game to successfully mix death-on-the-freeway antics with a plot you might actually care about, and it's worth a shot for that alone.

б. FORD: DRIV3R is solid, and as Kevin said, it’s certainly better than previous G7A-inspired efforts. It works mostly because of its great driving—each car handles beautifully, and the impressive physics engine makes accidental crashes worth the insurance hit. The on-foot missions aren't as hot, although it doesn't take too long to get the hang of the stiff control style. But really, | was hoping for more. The three cities are mighty impressive, yet they feel so empty. You’ve got to select a separate mode in order to drive around without worrying about the linear (but solid) missions and idiotic enemies, but when you do, there’s not much going on—no street racing or pizza delivering, just a couple secret cars and characters to find. Granted, no

At EGM, we evaluate only games that have been deemed final and reviewable by their publishers. Three editors rate each game independently, and we use the whole scale. 5.0 IS AVERAGE,

THE RATING SYSTEM

5.0-6.5 FAIR

70-10 6000

№ The Karaoke Revolution USO Tour didn’t really impress the Full Spectrum Warrior grunts....

AWARDS

©

Gold — for games with an average score of 9.0 or higher.

he Mort The lowest- rated game with unani- mously bad scores.

саме OF

THE MONTH The highest- scoring game each month gets a star.

Platinum — straight 10s. For games that are life- changing.

Silver — for games with a mean Score of 8.0 GAMECUBE gie 110 Tales of Symphonia

106 Full Spectrum Warrior 108 Thief: Deadly Shadows ESRB KEY (Also check out www.esrb.com)

110 Shadow Ops: Red Mercury “$ saccharine fun for the Шке PG-13 movies, Teen For the 18-and-over

whole family: dancing games often feature crowd. Intense violence, elves, rampant sharing, | fisticuffs, mild violence, боге, pixilated sex, and possibly Smurfs. and madcap antics. drugs; parents no likey.

— i > A ERR ERR RRR RRR REE EE |

m “Stop that car, m “You idiot! You butt-breath!” didn’t hit the brakes!”

m “You didn't

Highway Hijinx

DRIVSR's film editor allows would-be John Woos the chance to piece together their own action filmette and upload it online (that online part being Xbox only). This may be our one chance

to see Police Academy 8 in our lifetimes. Roll ‘em! Then imagine a vocal track with these Police Academy quotes, and maybe that guy who made the funny noises doing his helicopter impression...

one wants a blatant rip-off, but if a game hopes to challenge the best, it should at least offer comparable goods. A great ride while it lasts, though.

DE + Wow. If only the folks at Reflections had put half as much effort into gameplay as they did into replicating Miami, Nice, and Istanbul, DRIV3R would be phenomenal. But they didn't, and it's not. Kevin! It's totally not!

The Grand Theft Auto connection has already been made, but here's the vital Cliffs Notes version: DRIV3R has way better graphics but fewer missions, a fraction of the replay value, and probably even more bugs. The cities are meticulously, amazingly crafted, but you won't even visit huge chunks of them, unless you're in Take a Ride mode, and then, as G. Ford noted, there's not much to do but marvel at the scenery.

Ford's right about the driving parts being

Good: Undeniably stylish; hair-raising driving missions

Bad: Ends too soon; janky on-foot combat

Fun With Grenades: Blow up a car while you're in it. Good times

the best bits, too (the pair of on-rails shooter: i missions are also ace), but to call any рай о *, 5 2 DRIVSR frustration-free—Kevin! I'm giving you the stink eye!—my blood pressure's on the rise just thinking about it. How’s this: | can see the car I've been chasing for five minutes about a block ahead of me—it's right there—but, oops, the game says | lost it. Start over. Again.

Oh well, at least 1 can cross off “visit Istanbul" from my life's to-do list. 4%

Publisher: Atari Developer: Reflections Players: 1

ESRB: Mature

G. FORD

DEMIAN

www.driv3r.com

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 99

review сгеш: multiplatform

PS2/XB/GC (PS2/XBOX ONLY)

МОЛА FOOTBALL: 2005

The Gipper would be prou

Good: Authentic college gameplay and atmosphere

Bad: It’s time to spruce up the visuals Finally a Reality: EA Sports on Xbox Live

BRYAN: To pinch a phrase from renowned college gridiron announcer Keith Jackson, “Whoa, Nellie! Do we have ourselves a ball game here!” Yep, NCAA splits the uprights with premiere pigskin play that’s worthy of any armchair QB's attention.

NCAA's winning formula hasn't changed: Subtle but oh-so-effective gameplay enhancements make for unmatched realism on the field. With a simple button press you can now pump up fans to a decibel level that causes oppo- nents to miss audibles or, say, rattles a wet-behind-the-ears QB who isn’t used to playing in deafening stadiums like Florida's Swamp. NCAA also caters to those who don't TiVo SportsCenter—the new match-up stick provides instant pre- snap access to both team's strengths and weaknesses. Other upgrades include stingier secondaries and a blown-out dynasty mode where you'll discipline play- ers for bad grades and skipping classes (how much more real can you get?).

But being the picky SOB that | am, | do have one complaint: The graphics are starting to look dated. Hey, gotta work on something during the off-season, right?

THE VERDICTS

mm TEM

on В.

PATRICK: I’m addicted!

Inching ever closer to perfection, EA Sports made a great game better with the addition of home field advantage. Deafening crowd noise makes audibles dicey for the road team—you call an out, audible in, your receiver doesn’t hear you, and bam, you've thrown a pick that’s run back for six. Rosters have expanded to 70 players, and you can now offer incentives like scholarships (not Escalades or girls) to keep athletes happy, or they may trans- fer. This game should come with a 12-step program on how to stop playing it.

OFFICIAL PS MAG—CHRIS B: When asked to identify my favorite game ever, | have a quick answer: "Whatever the latest edition of NCAA Football is." It's still true for 2005—the gameplay remains every bit as real (well, except for the new physics- defying tipped balls), and the considerable depth has only deepened. Still, most of the new stuff just seems kind of “nice” to me—only the option to equalize the stats of both teams in an online contest stands out as particularly brilliant. Not that most of it isn’t already brilliant. Because it is.

DEVELOPER: EA Tiburon PLAYERS: PS2 1-2 (3-8 w/Multitap, 2 online), XB 1-4 (2 online), GC 1-4

ESRB: Everyone

3.0] PUBLISHER: EA Sports www.easports.com

100 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

MLB SLUGFEST: LOADED

Bobbleheads for everyone

ж

Contact X Power O Bunt e

ri Trick Pitch Х Fastball

С Curve

Changeup

Slider та

= ------

Good: Great arcade baseball action, good sim options

Bad: Isn't baseball season half-way over?

1 SlugFest Matchup: Rodeo clowns vs. Minotaurs

Much like the class clown who surprises everyone by landing a job, get- ting married, and having kids, SlugFest: Loaded has thrown a curveball: It's now part simulation. But don’t go thinking you'll need to be a number-crunching fan- tasy-baseball jock to own the diamond this year. Loaded's still mostly about fast- paced arcade action combined with brawling ballers—and this season it's all finally online (on both PS2 and XB).

But if, perhaps, you fancy a franchise deep enough to satisfy the stat-heads, with fantasy drafts, trades, and roster tweaking, well, you've got that, too. The optional MLB mode, which takes away the series’ trademark fisticuffs, fire, and other tomfoolery, plays fine as well. Admittedly, | would rather go through a season of the deep-pitching MVP Baseball or option-heavy ESPN over this, but if you don’t have someone to play alongside you, SlugFest ain't a bad con- solation. It's a solid game of baseball and the king of arcade gameplay.

її: These baseball junkies are a lit- tle too kind here (must be all the ball- park franks and cold brewskies clouding their judgment). Loaded’s diamond—the arcade one, not the new simmy ver- sion—is almost a carbon copy of last season’s. Which isn’t necessarily bad, but | expected more wackiness (this series is screaming for a create-a-spe- cial-pitch feature). Oh well, at least now 1 can head online and humiliate whiny BoSox fans like Mr. Ford with the all- mighty Bronx Bombers. But overall, this

THE VERDICTS (QUTOF 10)

G. FORD BRYAN

PATRICK

slugger falls shy of clearing the fences.

Midway’s latest season of all- out-action baseball plays a lot like last year's SlugFest. New game modes allow for a choice of arcade gameplay, simula- tion, or a little of both, while the brand- new pitching interface gives gamers more control while on the mound, thanks to the (optional) pitch meter. Batters now have a chance to duck those stat-draining, head- hunting beanballs, too. I’m also a big fan of the new franchise mode—especially the news section with real-time headlines about games played throughout a season.

Malan 6 ататын атана,

لګ < ?

1 SlugFest supports Xbox Live 3.0, so tourna- ments will be much easier to set up.

Publisher: Midway

Developer: Midway

Players: PS2 1-2 (2 online), XB 1-4 (2 online)

ESRB: Teen

www.midway.com

Harry, skipping intermediate card tricks class again,

PS2/XB/GC

-$

av

HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN

Hogwarts day care

MEGA MAN ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION

D

8

P eT

101 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

У

Good news, [а ез— Пе’ legal in three years

^h, Mega Man 2—the greatest game in the series. Some fools will argue that 3 deserves that honor, but they're wrong.

Good: Slick visuals, some clever ри; Bad: Too easy for older players PS2 Owners: Bring an EyeToy

SHANE: Azkaban continues EA's string of tyke-friendly adventures based on the ubiq- uitous Harry Potter film/book empire. Like Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets before it, this one rips off Nintendo's classic Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64) in just about every conceiv- able way: Lock-on combat, customizable action buttons, semiautomatic platforming, tricky boss battles, and puzzle-packed dun- geons all feel awfully familiar. But hey, at least the developers cribbed their notes from a winner—all that Zelda-ish gameplay feels instinctive and fun, whether it's in Hyrule or Hogwarts.

Azkaban's creepier vibe—think serial killers, werewolves, and soul-sucking ghouls—comes through clearly, and the series' maturation extends to the gameplay as well. You now control all three magical brats, switching between Harry, Ron, and Hermione on the fly to solve clever puzzles and dish out spells. But newfound com- plexity aside, this is still a kids’ game, both easy and a little short. Young Potter-heads will lap it up, especially the bonus EyeToy minigames in the PS2 version.

THE VERDICTS (QUT OF 10)

SHANE CRISPIN

Good: Mega Man 1-4, 7,8 Bad: Mega Man 5, 6

7.0 6.5 6.0

Harry Potter series can claim “100 million readers served" for a reason: Kids and adults alike fall under its spell. This game, on the other hand, will charm kids and...their kid brothers. Azkaban is a sim- ple, solid adventure with smart puzzles and high production values, but it leads its junior wizards through every baby step. Meanwhile, the story gets the short end of the broomstick in favor of minigames and power-walking jaunts through an authentic Hogwarts. Of-age Potter fanatics would be better off reading the book again.

JENNIFER: | want to believe in the children. Global warming? Cure for cancer? | trust future generations to figure it out. But if tykes of today are dumb enough to need this game’s rampant hand-holding and overbearing hints, then we're all freakin’ doomed. Gone are the pleasantly challeng- ing puzzles of previous Potters, replaced by fill-in-the-dots missions that require little thought. It’s still fun to explore Hogwarts, but even the great story gets lost amid fre- quent loading screens and unrelated tasks.

Publisher: EA Games Developer: EA UK

Players: 1 (2-4 in minigames) ESRB: Everyone

JENNIFER

www.eagames.com

Worst Mega Man Boss: Dust Man...no, wait—Plant Man

It’s hard to argue with the sheer value of this package. It’s a veritable Mega Man mother lode—10 games (two of 'em must be unlocked, though), remixed soundtracks, and a cavalcade of making- of bonus materials. Sure, most of the games here look like rusty antiques to modern gamers weaned on Dual Shocks, but it’s a nostalgic trip worth taking. Mega Man's gameplay conceit of tackling vari- ous robots in order to snatch their distinc- tive special weapons remains enjoyable to this day. Figuring out whose gun works best on which evil bot is half the fun.

Don’t come to Collection expecting con- sistency, however. The first few Mega Man games bubbled with creativity, but by Mega Man 5, Capcom had lost most of the plot. The boss robots became increasingly laughable and derivative, and the level designs felt recycled. The two execrable Mega Man fighting games, available here for the first time on a home console, sink even lower. Thankfully, the oft overlooked but stellar Mega Man 8 provides a potent tonic to all that swill. If you missed it on PS1, you're in for a treat.

Newcomers should stay away (“1 can't duck? Or shoot up?!”), but for those of us who grew up with Capcom's blue bomber, 30 bucks for this high-quality collection of old-school favorites is a steal. Timing jumps, learning boss fight patterns, figuring out how to get to that special item just out of reach— Mega Man is all about the simple plea- sures. Sure, a few of the games suck (The Power Battle, т looking at you), but it's still nice to have them all in one package.

It's scary to think that Mega Man is older than a large portion of the gaming populace, but it's a perfect opportunity for those people to find out why the series has been around so long. As this Collection shows, almost every one of the 10 Mega Man games offers an action experience that still holds up to this day, thanks to some great level design and gameplay mechanics. The only problem is that Capcom stuck to the basic Mega Man formula too closely—newcomers expecting drastically varied gameplay between each title are in for a surprise.

THE VERDICTS (OUT OF 10)

SHANE MARK

8.0 8.0 70

GIANCARLO

Publisher: Capcom

Developer: Capcom/Atomic Planet Players: 1-2

Rating: Everyone

www.capcom.com

review crew: multiplatform

PSI-OPS: THE MINDGATE CONSPIRACY

Go mental

Good: Mind-blowing action Bad: So much potential curbed by problems Beware of: Evil garden gnomes

SHAWN: It's all in your mind—the power to move matter, to hitch a ride in some- one’s head, to set foes on fire and siphon their spirits like so much food for thought. Psi-Ops is anything but another numbskull shooter, and when the brain- storm breaks, only your imagination and a few slip-ups limit the action. Nothing beats wondering whether something will work—can | possess that sniper in the watchtower, make him shoot the other sentries, then dive to his own death— and discovering that it does. Nick Scryer's mental maneuvers are instantly accessible (no pausing to select between 'em), so while you'll have to think about what you want to do, you won't have to worry about how you're gonna do it.

As it is, everyone's gonna steal Psi- Ops ideas. Still, the game could've been better. After a series of imaginative lev- els, the last few succumb to generic game mentality (switch puzzles, respawning enemies, and instant deaths are so passé), and the comedy skit of a story is laughable long before you reach its brain-farting conclusion. If only its creators had thought a little harder.

THE VERDICTS (OUT OF 10)

SHAWN BRYAN

8.075 75

ly brain aches when | think of all the sequels and clones these days. But I've found the gaming equivalent to swallowing aspirin—playing Psi-Ops. Like Shawn says, Nick Scryer's super-duper psychic abilities are the real draw here; it never gets old levitating, scorching, and entering the minds of foes. And with these powers, there are usually two or three different ways to resolve a given situation. But Psi-Ops does suffer a few lapses: The story is quite cliché, and most boss battles play out the same way (quick tip: Master the art of telekinesis).

XBN—GREG: Seldom in the history of electronic entertainment has one game presented such new and exciting ideas— in this case, spooky mental powers—in an overwhelmingly fun package. Then having enthralled and entertained, its fun fueled by the protagonist’s ability to wield these powers with great creativity, the game potholes itself entirely, forcing players to run through a screen-warping altered reality, shoot cheap “psi-beasts,” and hunt for colored objects to place on similarly colored pedestals. Wha’ happen’?

PUBLISHER: Midway DEVELOPER: Midway PLAYERS: 1-2 ESRB: Mature

GREG

www.psiopsgam

102 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

SPLINTER CELL

PANDORA TOMORROW

Online ain't just for SOCOM anymore...

version, but hey, at least you're not paying $50 a year to play onl

he most revolutionary multiplayer you've ever played...

is great here but better on Xbox

Extra Bad: The voice acting from the secondary characters В i

If you ran into me on the street, chances are, I'd bring up stealth-action hit Pandora Tomorrow in any gaming- related conversation. "You have to play it,” PII say. “It’s revolutionary.” If you don’t dismiss me as a hardcore kook and give it a try, you'll be hooked, guar- anteed. The two spies (hunted) versus two mercenaries (hunters) dynamic is different from anything you've ever played and is unbelievably addictive with a multitude of gadgets and weapons, all unique to each team but delicately bal- anced against each other. Almost all of its genius is intact from the Xbox ver- sion, except Ubisoft yanked some graph- ical effects and real estate from the lev- els to fit on PS2. It’s disappointing, but if you never saw the Xbox game, you wouldn’t even notice or care—this edi- tion is still amazing.

Single-player-wise, PS2 gets a new level, but it’s no big deal since it lasts only about 10 minutes. As a whole, though, the one-player game rocks. It's easy to overlook next to the great multi- player stuff, but the beautiful stages and intense stealth situations are well worth playing through.

Though it suffers a bit in compar- ison with its Xbox cousin, PS2 Pandora is still one gorgeous game. Fancy effects such as rippling water, real-time flash- lights, and realistic shadows push Sony’s black box to new heights (you can liter- ally hear it straining to keep up). Single player is basically more of the same solid Cell formula: sometimes frustrating

but solid stealth/shooting, with a few break-out moments when you're let outdoors and off the trip-one- alarm-and-its-over leash.

As for multiplayer...oh multiplayer, sweet, sweet multiplayer. Put it this way: We're still playing the Xbox version four months after release, with no end in sight. The PS2 online game is missing some of the fine details, but in the end, it delivers that same tension and addictive quality you just gotta experience.

The single- player game is a perfectly adequate sequel to the original, but the multiplayer stuff may well be the best online experi- ence on PS2 right now. It requires a con- certed effort to get into, and it forces you to socialize with all the other freaks out there—but the controls are so perfect that they're transparent, and the whole thing will get under your skin to the point that it'll permeate every facet of your normal life. You'll never look at a CCTV camera the same way ever again.

=="

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Frequent checkpoints mean less tearing your hair out.

THE VERDICTS (QUTOF 10)

MARK

DEVELOPER: Ubisoft PLAYERS: 1 (2-4 System Link or broadband-only online) ESRB: Teen

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft JOHN D. |

www.splintercell.com/us

* Pandora previously earned Game of the Month honors on Xbox, so we're disqualifying it from competition this issue.

JENNIFER: Unless you've been living under a petrified Vectrex for the past few years, you know karaoke has overtaken bowling, cow tipping, and getting Tasmanian Devil tattoos as Most Beloved Stupid Drunken Pastime. It still works surprisingly well here in videogame form: The game’s pitch- detecting technology never ceases to amaze by accurately determining how well (or badly, in Shane's case) you're singing. Volume 2 isn't just a 35-song add-on to last year's model; a couple subtle but important adjustments have been made. You can now jump right into songs in quick play mode without going through the long (and potentially party-killing) process of setting everyone up for competition mode. Truth is, the karaoke dilettantes who'll have fun playing this at a party don’t really want to compete. The low-commitment “short song” option, which allows you to sing an abbreviated version of your selection, is another nice new touch—the perfect way to coax shy, unmusical (even sober) people into singing. But | still want duets and song-only expansion discs, dang it!

PlayStation 2

KARAOKE

REVOLUTION VOLUME 2

Pump up the volume

THE VERDICTS (ОТ ОРТО)

JENNIFER SHANE

TWO

AQUA TEEN HUNGER FORCE" Volume Two

Coming to a rack near you.

THEM BUY 20

DISC BOX SETS ? 13 EPISODES Special features: Deleted scenes, Making of and more.

EKA

M =

8.5 8.5 8.5

COMPLETE

& SEALAB 2021" Season One

SHANE: Although I'm

steamed at the serious lack of new stages and characters—this is a full-price game, after all— still consider this a worthy pur- chase for American Idol hopefuls and tipsy crooners alike. As my fellow reviewers point out, the new modes help to stream- line group play, and the radically diverse song selection rules. Whether you're get- ting a little bit country with Garth Brooks, losing IQ points with Jessica Simpson, or warbling along with the Darkness, there's something for every occasion and taste.

GMR—CARRIE: On the surface, Volume 2 is just Karaoke Revolution with new songs and mostly the same old characters and venues. But the simple addition of the quick play mode makes this game much better suited for the brief attention spans of party players. The medley mode is cool, too, because you can try out three to five songs in one short sitting—another big plus for those who don't want to sit around all night waiting for their turn to sing. These simple tweaks make Volume 2 far superior.

Publisher: Konami Developer: Harmonix Players: 1-8

ESRB: Everyone

CARRIE

www.konami.com

SETS.

HUNGER FORCE

[adult swim].

ЧАТ ош INET POLK} adultswim.com

review Crew: playstation 2

PlayStation 2

WAY OF THE SAMURAI 2

Battle of branching paths

Good: Multiple story paths offer plenty of replay

Bad: Rough around the edges

Why Can’t We All: Just meditate in our rock gardens?

SHAWN: Help assassinate an allegedly corrupt official or intercept his attackers’ swords? “A warrior,” according to the old maxim, “must make decisions in the space of five breaths”; and in Way of the Samurai, your choices are never without consequence. Every opportunity you gain by siding with crooks comes with hidden Costs (is going for the five-finger discount worth the risk of shopkeepers shutting you out?), and playing the game over just to see what happens when you betray your friends and befriend your foes is half the fun.

Maybe | should say “more than half,” as Samurai’s swordplay, though not rusty, isn’t as sharp as it should be. It’s defi- nitely deep—the more thought you put into fights, the faster you'll pick up new techniques—but programming glitches abound. The camera gets confused and characters vanish (ninja magic?); stupid bystanders stumble into your bloodbaths, reducing your honor rating; and the tar-

geting system makes it too easy to punc- ture the man you intended to protect, taking away the whole choice thing that’s supposed to give the game its edge.

JON 0: Unlike the recent glut of samurai games, Way focuses on char- acter interaction and the player's own decisions rather than straight-up action. As a roamin' ronin, you'll explore sever- al similar villages across the land, and fig- ure out basic gameplay rules for yourself along the way. So expect trial-and-error sessions that can get you penalized or killed, booted back to the title screen, and forced to muddle through another 10- minute intro before reattempting your pre- vious folly. Though highly replayable, this Samurai’s swordplay is reproachable— you might want to try before you buy.

OFFICIAL PS MAG—DANA: While Shawn's right about the different endings being the most interesting aspect of Samurai, they also introduce a whole pile of tedium, as you're forced to sit through the same lengthy cut-scenes over and over. The plot is glacially paced, too, and | found myself killing time (or peasants) while waiting for scripted events to occur. Add in dreary levels and lackluster duel- ing, and you've got a game that is slightly inferior to its mediocre predecessor.

Publisher: Capcom Developer: Acquire Players: 1

ESRB: Mature

www.capcom.com

104» ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

PlayStation 2

SMASH COURT TENNIS PRO TOURNAMENT 2

Just give us the highlights....

Good: Nice variety of strokes with realistic effects Bad: Hardcore enthusiasts might lament the shorter tourneys Wonder Twin Powers Deactivate: Serena’s in...Venus isn't

ON D: Videogame tennis can be as bor- ing as real-life golf for folks who don’t follow Andy Roddick’s every move. Fortunately, the faster-paced Smash Court is a good quick fix for those of us who still serve underhand. Ра rather play to six games on several different lawns than go a full five sets against one sweaty Frenchman, and now I can.

Controls and timing are easy to master with a quick tutorial, and give you a full array of shots from slicing drops to top- spun crosscourters. The game also offers a decent secondary viewing option when you're on the far side of the court— putting you back in the foreground, where depth perception is a heck of a lot easier to gauge. Where Smash Court doesn't deliver: Dreamcast-quality graphics and some pretty unrealistic A.—who almost never hit the ball wide, into the net, or to my computer-controlled teammate in doubles. I spent about a minute crushing baseline forehands cross-corner with one dude while our teammates had a nice chat at the net. Maybe he’s smarter than | think—he knew where the weak spot was....

0!

1: Smash Court 2 ain't the best tennis game (that'd be Xbox's Top Spin), but it's at least the best to hit PS2 since 2002's Sega Sports Tennis. The game's main draw is definitely its pro tour mode; building up a player from scratch, RPG style, is surprisingly fun and addictive, and having the option to tackle it “mis- sion-style” (just the important parts) is a very cool feature. But why no online

mode? C’mon, Namco, get with the times! OFFICIAL PS MAG—GIANCARLO: Smash Court 2 deserves credit for being a fun tennis game that isn’t just a Virtua Tennis (Dreamcast) knockoff. Greater emphasis is placed on timing and position to execute effective shots on the court, which makes it a little more difficult to get into than Virtua Tennis-style games, but ultimately more rewarding. Smash’s crazy-addictive career mode, in which you build a charac- ter from scratch and buff up individual Statistics as you participate in minigames or tournaments, also scores an ace.

1 Train a ruthless power hitter or cerebral finesse player in pro tour mode.

Developer: Namco Players: 1-2 (3-4 w/multitap)

| Publisher: Namco | ESRB: Everyone

www.namco.com

=, WAY OF THE

| WAY DF THE ТОИ FS ie, 9) ; < / /

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©2003, 2004 Spike/ACQUIRE. PUBLISHING AND DISTRIBUTION BY CAPCOM CO.. LTD,, CAPCOM U.S.A., INC. CAPCOM arid the. GAPCOM logo are registered trademarks of tion" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks qf Sony Computer Entertainment Ine. The ratings icon: is a trademark of the

Capcom Co., Ltd. "Рі

Entertainment Softwa ssociation, All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners,

_ Bad guys have big - green arrows above their - heads; Which is handy.

Carry your gut-shot team member back to the casevac (Army-speak for a doctor and supply truck) and he'll be fixed up good as new, rarin' to fight. Just like real life.

FULL SPECTRUM WARRIOR

Shock inducing, awe inspiring

One hostile with a machine gun and a stack of sandbags can chew up your whole squad like so much mincemeat, but for all the shootin’, Full Spectrum Warrior isn’t a shooter. Call it an infantry-tactics sim, a fresh clip for a war genre in need of new ammo. Just like the real troops who train on their own Army-authentic version, you'll learn to lay down cover fire with one team while bounding into a flanking position with the other. But instead of shoving around game pieces from a general’s-eye view, you're in the middle of it with your men, plotting the attack while under fire.

Friendly A.I. is first-rate (each soldier is sea- soned enough to know when to hit the dirt and cover his sector), and issuing tactical direction is easy. Some might argue that it's too easy once you've mastered the essential maneuvers, but fierce scripted sequences keep you frosty. Matter of fact, when your boys start screaming as RPG rounds streak by, you'll feel silly for assuming you'd miss being the one pulling the trigger. Thanks to its

106 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com

war-winning coalition of graphics and gameplay, Warrior is actually more gripping than most soldier games. It lets go only on the predictable second playthrough, when you're aware of sniper positions and know when to expect ambushes.

I'm pretty gung ho on Warrior—the grunt's-eye view of tactical urban combat is visu- ally gripping and, | can only assume, fairly accu- rate for armchair sergeants, considering the game's roots as a real military-training sim. But | don't quite share Shawn's battle lust. The game's arbitrary rule set is frustratingly flawed: An enemy can step out from around a corner and be com- pletely exposed, but he's still considered behind Cover and, therefore, invulnerable to gunfire. What's the point of putting the player on the ground, right in the s***, if the game reverts to pen-and-paper war-game rules when the bullets start to fly? | might as well be issuing orders to army ants from the bridge of my zeppelin.

| War Games For Real Warriors

While Full Spectrum Warrior lets civvies slap on chevrons for a stint at virtual soldiering, developer Pandemic’s other war child, Full Spectrum Command, trains the real brass at Fort Benning in company-level battlefield coordination. Don't feel bad about missing out on the authentic action, though; the real deal is more about book-learnin' and moving sym- bols on a map than engaging gameplay. Besides, it’s got lousy graphics.

Still, as a strategy game Warrior is a fun and unique experience just wish it were all it could be.

History Channel-TiVoing military groupies will snap a crisp salute to Full Spectrum Warrior, what with its salty war- movie dialogue and so-real-it's-educational warfare. But even peacenik players will want to ® stroke their gun barrels. The boot camp levels ease greenhorns into this game's unique brand of warfare, which plays out more like chess than a typical shooter. Although missions feel a tad canned once you figure them out, my heart still raced as | planned impromptu surgical strikes against dug-in enemies and figured out how to spoof heavy-weapon emplacements. Best of all, | always had the slick online coopera- ( tive option—which has two players guiding one squad each—to turn to once the single- player campaign started getting musty. жай

Warrior is short, but with the promise of more downloadable missions, the matter might not warrant a court-martial

THE VERDICTS (OUT OF 10)

Publisher: THQ Developer: Pandemic Players: 1-2 (2 online) ESRB: Mature

DEMIAN

CRISPIN

www.fullspectrumwarrior.com

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= Good conversa- tion: You'll learn a lot in Thief if you just shut up and listen for once in your life.

THIEF: DEADLY SHADOWS

Puts the dark in Dark Ages

If you take for granted all the radar and communications gizmos you get in most stealth games, get ready for a rude welcome to medieval times. Thief—set in a fortress city seemingly at perpetual midnight—sends gruff main felon Garrett on missions of grand theft bauble with no more intel than a shoddy map. And that’s both good and bad. It makes for immersive exploration of castles, docks, dungeons, and factories that look so authentic you can nearly feel the rough- hewn stone. Your only guidance in tracking down important loot comes from eavesdropping on con- versations or scanning scattered books.

And that's the downside. Thief's visuals are so nearly pitch black that it's easy to get lost in the shadows, making mapping out new environments a plodding process. Meanwhile, chatty guards and townies tend to step on the dialogue of important characters you're trying to overhear. It makes fig- uring out what to do and where to go next more

challenging than it should be. : Thief's city grows as the story

unfolds, and it packs lots of side quests. Unfortunately, the shops that buy your loot and the ones that sell supplies are on opposite ends of town, forcing you to backtrack and sit through longish load screens just to gear up for the next mission. But | persevered—mainly to see what medieval environment I'd explore next, not because of the story. | stopped following Thief's convoluted plot when | started fighting the medieval robots.

Think of Thiefas a poor man’s, Ren Faire

Splinter Cell. Master pickpocket Garret is flush with olde-worlde gadgets (moss arrows, flashbang grenades?), but he rarely needs to use them. It's far easier—though not very thiefy—to kill everyone between you and whatever treasure you're after, rather than slink in and slink out undetected. It's fun to backstab your way to infamy and fortune, don’t get me wrong, but 1 wish the consequences for going medieval on everyone were more severe.

Crispin’s also right to pillory Thief’s map sys- tem. The game’s environments are huge and

complex, which is definitely a plus, but without a “thou art here” indicator, navigation is needlessly difficult. Thief is a long, enjoyable game, but this potential gem could use a bit more polish.

Thief is from the studio that gave us Deus

Ex: Invisible War last year, and it inherits more than a few of that game's problems—strange bouts of random slowdown, some characters animate all wobbly, and your Xbox’ll take all afternoon to load up the game’s moody locales. Go with it, though, and you'll find a game that’s a small beacon of originality in an ocean of me-too “stealth” jobs.

What makes Thief different? There's no particu- lar secret—you've got the freedom to tackle a heist any way you want, either by sneaking around ninjalike or killing everyone you run across. This design approach actually makes hiding in shad- owy corners fun instead of mind-numbing. It may sound hard to get your head around, but the laid- back difficulty level makes this dark, medieval experience surprisingly frustration-free. six

Working stiffs: Thief's guards versus the goons of Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow...

Swords, big hammers,

and spells

Splinter Cell goon

108 е ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

Guns. Lots of guns

Tenacity

Will hunt for you for Knock ’em out with a 15 seconds if they

hear you

Will hunt for you for 30 seconds if they hear you

blackjack to the cranium

Knock ’em out with a gun butt to the cranium

Most brain-dead moment №.` wv Don't notice when you i

jump on their heads

from above

Discuss rashes, leech- ing, and other matters of medieval medicine

Talk politics, plan to Gladly stand in pools of water for easy

stickyshocking

get loaded іп a field of chronic

THE VERDICTS (QUT OF 0)

CRISPIN

Publisher: Eidos Developer: lon Storm Players: 1

ESRB: Mature

DEMIAN KEVIN

www.thief3.com

You're going to love her killer moves. When her world is threatened by the awakening of ancient evil, Ailish and

three other great heroes must unite to defeat it. Now this enchanting princess, a brave warrior, a high-flying gunslinger, and a dark huntress will battle through the Realm of Shadows on a quest to reclaim their world. Rotate between each character and use all their powers to prevail in one of the most intense action RPGs. Sudeki will leave you breathless.

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TALES OF SYMPHONIA

Hot-n-heavy RPG action in an unlikely place

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3 Symphonia’ 's battles seem to erupt with chaos, but they're actually simple to control.

110 « ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

dia SHADOW Of $: THE Monty

SHAWN: The first things you see in Shadow Ops say it all. There they are, Nos. 1 and 2 on the checklist of shooter cliché: crates and exploding barrels. And the ter- rorists—surprise, surprise—take cover behind “ет. See, these are well-trained evildoers, the kind disciplined to run right into your rifle muzzle and jerk around like they’re auditioning for American Idol: Al- Jareeza Edition. It’s unwise, for sure, but seeing as how a new batch of foes will spawn right in front of your face, maybe they're a little overconfident. Then again, it could be their certainty of reappearing in the requisite tropical and arctic missions where they'll wait for you to hop on a mounted machine gun before attacking that comforts them—is that No. 4 or No. 5 on the checklist, | forget? Nah, they're probably just happy to have found work as Men Who Fight Like Morons in a game that's all wrong and just as generic as it was the last 10 times you played it.

SHOE: At first, | was willing to overlook the clichés 'cause the game starts off with a nuclear bang (both literally and figurative-

SHAWN SHOE

Good: Exciting battles, stylized visuals

Good: Well, let's see...it sounds pretty decent Bad: More generic than Sam's Club Soda Multiplayer: DVD extras didn't make Gigli better, either

ly), with intense action that

makes the Black Hawk Down movie look like Army Men. That was just at the start, though—the game quickly devolves into average shooter fare after that. This includes multiplayer, which is a joke: dull levels, instant respawns in capture the flag (try invading a base when downed enemies just reappear right away, with full health), and a horrible interface that leaves online soldiers more confused than eagerly anticipating the action.

XBN—GREG: Only a series of straightfor- ward yet fun and somewhat graphically glitchy multiplayer and Xbox Live options prevent this reviewer from recommending Shadow Ops: Red Mercury be sent off to a new home, perhaps on the surface of planet Mercury. As a single-player game, it's filled with dumb enemies who eschew cover—even when they're supposedly highly trained fighters—friendly forces who are generous enough to let you, the player, clear out huge courtyards without aid, and run-and-gun firefights surprising- ly devoid of intensity.

Publisher: Atari

Developer: Zombie Studios

Players: 1-2 (2-8 online)

ESRB: Teen

www.shadowopsgame.com

Bad: Painful difficulty spikes, dull cut-scenes

Previous Tales Experience: Not required

For the past two years, Cube own- ers looking for traditional role-playing fare were outta luck—apart from the ported- from-Dreamcast Skies of Arcadia Legends, GC's selection has been a desolate waste- land. For them, Symphonia is a godsend.

This game follows the established rules of RPG-dom: You’ve got your band of ragtag kids bent on saving the world, myriad loca- tions to explore, and thousands of enemies to splatter. While the story line, characters, and puzzle-packed dungeons don't offer any real surprises, everything's very well presented—attractive visuals spring to life like a watercolor storybook in 3D, and qual- ity voice acting lends the narrative weight and levity. Surprisingly, though, it’s the bat- tle system that holds everything together. Since you're actually swinging your sword and linking combos in real time, the chaotic encounters never get dull.

Symphonia isn't without a few flat notes: Boss fights skew too difficult, forcing you to bash random enemies for a while to level up first. Also, you're constantly bombarded with "skits"—optional bits of text-only party chitchat. These overlong sequences

flesh out the plot, but they're а total drag to sit through.

Unless you’re a connoisseur of Japanese RPGs with a circle of like-minded friends and a long list of bookmarked web- sites full of walkthroughs, you'll need real perseverance for Symphonia. It throws you into its complex, multilayered combat sys- tem headfirst; three hours in, | still felt like | needed a tutorial. Don't be fooled by the clunky skits—decent voice acting propels the sappy but cute story. It’s a rewarding, rich, and addictive game, but the stingy save system makes it a tad too hardcore.

What makes this game addictive is its battle system. The story is drippy and predictable, though the skits aren't nearly as bad as Shane and Jen claim. But the battles—so much fun, so speedy, so deep. Like Othello, the mantra here is “a moment to learn, a lifetime to master.” The game's gorgeous graphics will work your eyes just as hard as the battles work your thumb, too. Finally, the Tales series has a title with a shot at stardom.

THE VERDICTS (OUT OF 10)

SHANE JENNIFER

CHRISTIAN

Publisher: Namco Developer: Tales Studio Players: 1

ESRB: Teen

tales.namco.com

REVIEWS

The stragglers and the no-shows

aws were not J quite literally picked up off the

floor when a copy of the oft-delayed one-time Xbox launch title Malice actually showed up at our office just as we were going to press. Man, that’s some power- ful bad box art. Might want to hold off on any purchase plans until next month's review...

Review Crew Survivor hopefuls: We’re no longer requiring you to mail in a videotape to enter (see egmsur- vivor.1up.com). No one has VHS technology anymore, turns out.

Bad box art: Responsible for 238 deaths a year.

PS2 • EA Sports — EA Sports started with the outstanding FIFA game engine, added some right- analog-stick game- play tweaks, then slapped on the UEFA badge. Though you may not care unless you're а soccer-mad Euro, you won't find a deeper champi-

onship mode in a footy game. It's almost Winning Eleven Seven good. But

not quite. Let's not get crazy here.

Xbox RPG Sudeki has been pushed back to a July release, and we expect it to make our next issue....Reviewer Jon Dudlak has called for a world- wide three-month moratorium on samurai games; developers take note....Publisher Bethesda refused to send us a copy of PowerDrone Racing (Р52/ХВ), so that’s a pretty bad sign....Similarly, our guy at Konami kept changing the sub- ject every time we tried

to get McFarlane’s

Monsters: Evil Ф.Д Prophecy (PS2) 247%

in, so unless your name's Seanbaby, avoid WT it...We did get —

our hands on — 4E IndyCar [^ S Series 2005 14 % (XB), but it’s ә

one of those

rare Code- ет

masters гас- %

ing games

we just 1 Чоп саге | about. It's

nice to turn right every once ina while, y'know?

McFarlane: loves pirates.

Space was awfully tight this month, and some good GBA games were squeezed out. Dang it.

GBA • THQ — Rare, the revered Brits behind Donkey Kong Country (Super Nintendo Entertainment System), resurrect an ancient fran- chise with this new hop-n-bop platformer starring a bumbling explorer and lots of silly animals. It's actually quite decent, assum- ing you can stomach the endless gobbledygook voice samples.

GBA • Sega — It’s classic side- scrolling Sonic action, well-tai- lored to GBA. The graphics are crisp and the hedgehog’s trade- mark speed is suitably dizzying. The action does get repetitive, though, and some cheaply placed enemies prove annoying, but that’s been a knock on Sonic since the get-go.

GBA * Capcom — This Pokémon- esque strategy/battle/collect-em- up still seems innovative after four games, though the last title felt far more complete. But the fact that this vapid story doesn’t “end” until you beat it three times could be the last straw for Network series followers. 4%

@ ш HEE eem ү |

т

|10] ^^

Booger monsters up the ying-yang.

Hedgehogs in love.

Mega Man in Saturday Night Fever.

« ЖЖЖЖ »

—The People Who Own This Shop

“A truly admirable

anime collection.” —Student from O-Chem Class

“A Japanese marvel.” --ОЙ Kid on the Block

“Two thumbs up.”

—Smith and Tanaka from Gym

“A delightful

anime resource”

— Video Store Manager

“The must-visit site of the year.”

— Guy Who Surfs a Lot

“Anime toys, books,

figures...you name it!” Die Hard Collector

@Dakibaciaku

http://www.akibaotaku.com

REVIEWS ARCHIVE

The hit list...and the @%$! list с

GAME SYSTEM VERDICT (out of 10) AWARD greatest hit Alias PS2/XB и Clever disguises can't conceal crappy gameplay 50 or miss? All-Star Baseball 2005 PS2/XB W Таке us out to the ballgame.. just not this one 55 American Idol PS2 W The only button you need to press is on your console 15 Атрей2 XB W The Tony Hawk of snowboarding, complete with snow skating 80 Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance I! Р52/ХВ № Ho-hum hack-n-slash. Now that's a role you don't wanna play 7.0 Breakdown XB II You can practically feel the impacts in this first-person brawler 85 Bujingai: The Forsaken City PS2 W Your average martial arts actioner, but with 100 percent more Japanese rock stars 4.5 Champions of Norrath: Realms of EO PS2 WA Dark Alliance-style take on EverQuest, complete with online co-op 85 The Chronicles of Riddick XB W With gameplay this good, a life sentence isn't long enough 90 Colin McRae Rally 04 XB W Rev your engines for 04's top-notch handling and wicked terrain 85 Crash Nitro Kart PS2/XB/GC W For roadside assistance, call 1-800-BUY-MARIO-KART 55 М Crimson Sea 2 PS2 W Space runs red with bug blood when Dynasty Warriors goes sci-fi 80 А В Өй ДЕ Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge ХВ и Single-player soars, but it's the online dogfighting that keeps us strapped in 9.0 |= Custom Robo 6C ІШ Robo-battling is solid, but what's with the shallow pseudo-RPG stuff? 65 CRIMSON SKIES: Cy Girls PS2 W Progress-impeding puzzles will make you feel like the butt of a bad blonde joke 7.0 HIGH RO AD TO Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix XB W Perfect your gimp step and build a pimp rep. 85 Dead Man's Hand XB E Find out how the West was dumb in this oddball first-person shooting gallery 6.5 REVENGE Destruction Derby Arenas PS2 WW Even crash-test dummies would yawn at this wreckage 45 Deus Ex: Invisible War XB W Invisible War's captivating story compensates for its technical shortcomings. 8.0 E Xbox Drake XB т One of our reviewers gave it a 0.5. What do you think? 20 № Released: October 2003 Drakengard PS2 W Dynasty Warriors meets Panzer Dragoon, only not as good as either one 75 W Original Scores: 9.0, 9.0, 8.5 Dynasty Tactics 2 PS2 W Think Dynasty Warriors with complex strategy and none of the hack-n-slash action 7.5 Where other dogfighters stall, Crimson EA Sports Fight Night 2004 Р52/ХВ W EA returns to the ring under а new name and registers a knockout 85 Skies hits mach speeds with the snap ESPN College Hoops PS2/XB ІШ Fouls out for playing too much like a pro baller 65 of the analog flight stick and lets you ESPN Major League Baseball PS2/XB W if MVP is this season's Yankees, then sadly, ESPN is its BoSox 8.0 live out your Top Gun fantasies with 15 ESPN NBA Basketball PS2/XB № Even Kobe Bryant's star-studded legal team struggled finding fault with this опе 8.5 other online flyboys. ESPN NHL Hockey PS2/XB E The reigning Cup champ 85 EverQuest Online Adventures: Frontiers PS2 E Doesn't the front lawn constitute a new frontier for Evercrack-heads? 65 EyeToy: Groove PS2 W Don't let looking like a displaying ape stop you 80 Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel PS2/XB W Repetitive critter hunting in a watered-down wasteland 40 Fatal Frame Il: Crimson Butterfly PS2 W Combating poltergeists with a Polaroid is scarier than it sounds 75 FIFA Soccer 2004 PS2/XB/GC W Responsive, intricate controls, but FIFA's our second fave after Winning Eleven 75 Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles GC W Charming RPG romp works best with three friends along for the GBA-linked-up ride 8.0 Final Fantasy Tactics Advance GBA № Deep strategy for on-the-go tacticians. Complete with androgynous heroes 9.0 Final Fantasy ХІ PS2 Wi А monstrous MMORPG that'll consume your life. ADD types need not apply 85 Firefighter FD. 18 PS2 и Fight fires, fireman-hating robots, and trial-and-error gameplay 65 Front Mission 4 PS2 W You'll need to be smart to figure out this deep mech-strategy game 8.0 Future Tactics: The Uprising PS2/XB/GC | Ш Unattractive, uninspired, and woefully unfunny bargain-basement strategy trifle 4.0 Galactic Wrestling: Feat. Ultimate Muscle PS2 ША bare-bones feature set makes this Muscle worth flexing only as a rental 55 Goblin Commander: Unleash the Horde PS2/XB/GC W Off-the-leash real-time strategy with a few warts 80 Grabbed by the Ghoulies XB Ii Something seriously stupid this way comes 55 Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup PS2/XB/GC Ша Schoolboys hop aboard broomsticks and play whizzing, wizardly full-contact rugby 7.5 Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life вс Wi Would you really have more fun watching the grass grow? Find out 65 Hitman: Contracts Р52/ХВ Wi Money grows on trees when you cut throats to rake leaves 8.0 James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing PS2/XB/GC W With brains, brawn, bullets, and balls, Bond saves the world again. Splendid 8.0 La Pucelle: Tactics PS2 іш Deep strategy-RPG gameplay you'll love, with childish characters you'll despise 7.5 The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords. GC № Zelda teaches Link a little somethin’ about four-play in this old-school adventure 8.5 Lethal Skies И PS2 и Crashes and burns 30 Links 2004 XB W The rest of the PGA can't compete with Tiger 65 Lifeline PS2 W Wanna play Resident Evil again, using speech recognition that doesn't really work? 4.5. Lowrider PS2 18 Won't make you wanna bounce 5.0 Lord of the Rings: Return of the King — PS2/XB/GC Ша Get hackin’ in this beautiful beat-em-up 85 Lord of the Rings: Return of the King GBA 18 Legolas gets shrunk to Keebler size, and your girlfriend still thinks he's hot 7.0 Mafia PS2/XB Wi Jack jalopies and outdrive thugs in this glitchy 1930s gangster game 6.0 Magic: the Gathering—Battlegrounds ХВ Wi The cards say you need a life 40 Manhunt PS2 W Rockstar's latest effort to keep the ESRB around 70 Mario Golf Advance Tour GBA W Play with your putter on the bus—and not get arrested for once 9.5 Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga GBA W A polished, thoroughly enjoyable adventure in the same vein as Paper Mario 9.0 Mario Kart: Double Dash!! GC W Cooperative driving spells pure, unfiltered fun 10 Mario Party 5 GC E Nintendo's pair of plumbers are no party crashers 8.0 Mario vs. Donkey Kong GBA W The plumber and big ape clash again in this good, but not great, platformer/puzzler 7.0 Maximo vs. Army of Zin PS2 Wi Despite the clean underwear, it's not as zesty as the original 60 Max Payne GBA W Bullet time in your back pocket 7.0 Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne PS2/XB № Slow-mo bloodshed at its hard-boiled best 8.0 Medal of Honor: Rising Sun PS2/XB/GC W Pro tip: Don't touch that tempting, mounted machine gun 55 Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes 6С и The stealth-action classic is still solid enough to make this remake а must-play 80

5 Red Dead Revolver —now with 50 percent more bad and ugly.

SCORES

SYSTEM VERDICT . (out of 10) AWARD

Metal Slug 3 XB Metroid Zero Mission GBA

MLB 2005 Ps2

MTX: Mototrax PS2/XB MX Unleashed PS2/XB MVP Baseball 2004 PS2/XB/GC NBA Ballers PS2/XB NBA Live 2004 PS2/XB/GC NCAA March Madness 2004 PS2/XB NFL Blitz Pro PS2/XB/GC NFL Fever 2004 XB

NFL Street PS2/XB/GC NHL 2004 PS2/XB/GC NHL Hitz Pro PS2/XB/GC NHL Rivals 2004 XB Nightshade Ps2

Ninja Gaiden XB Onimusha 3: Demon Siege PS2 Onimusha Blade Warriors PS2 Phantasy Star Online: Episode ІІ вс

Pitfall: The Lost Expedition PS2/XB/GC Pokémon Channel. вс Pokémon Colosseum вс

Project Gotham Racing 2 XB

В: Racing Evolution PS2/XB/GC RalliSport Challenge 2 XB Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando PS2

Red Dead Revolver PS2/XB Resident Evil Outbreak PS2

Rise to Honor PS2 R-Type Final PS2 ‘Samurai Jack: The Shadow of Aku | PS2/XB/GC Samurai Warriors р52

Sega GT Online XB Serious Sam: Next Encounter PS2/GC Seven Samurai 20ХХ PS2 Shining Force: Res. of the Dark Dragon GBA

Shrek 2 PS2/XB/GC Siren PS2

The Sims; Bustin’ Qut PS2/XB/GC Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow XB Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow GBA SOCOM Il: U.S. Navy SEALs PS2

Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy ХВ.

Steel Battalion: Line of Contact xB

The Suffering PS2/X8 Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain PS2 Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines | PS2/XB Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 PS2/XB/GC TOCA Race Driver 2 XB

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Jungle Storm PS2

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3 XB

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 3 Ps2

Top Spin XB Transformers Ps2

UFC: Sudden Impact Ps2 Unreal Il: The Awakening XB

Van Helsing PS2/XB WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Party Game$ 6С Winning Eleven 7 PS2

World Tour Soccer 2005 PS2

Wrath Unleashed PS2/XB WWE Raw 2: Ruthless Aggression XB

WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain PS2

WWE Wrestlemania XIX GC

Worms 3D PS2/XB/GC

I Fantastic but frustrating 2D side-scroller for the nimble fingered

75

W Own this souped-up remake of she-warrior Samus Aran's first mission or face ridicule 9.5

W A quick trip to the minors has made MLB a title contender again

їй Poor handling has our bike stuck in the mud. Wait, that doesn't smell like mud W Riding Unleashed's off-road crotch rackets is worth the sore соссух

W Like the Bronx Bombers’, MVP's new additions will excite all baseball fans

и Midway's one-on-one baller has the skillz to pay the billz (or something like that) E Not even the Laker Girls can compete with Live's stylish on-court moves

т Only thing missing from this college hoopster is rioting co-eds

ША Madcen-like face-lift puts Blitz firmly back in the playoff race

E Scant franchise options keep Fever warming the bench

W Playground (or is it prison?) rules football; best played with friends

WI Wild checking makes hockey look like a bar fight; dynasty mode scores a hat trick № Like a porn star's assets, Hitz isn't exactly realistic, but it's sure fun to play with W Our referees slap Rivals with a five-minute major for sucking

W 3 Ninjas Kick Back on a scale of ninja-tude

и Swordplay so sweet that you'll break out the split-toe slip-ons

WR The soul-sucking series finale has us screaming "Vive /a France!”

W Think Super Smash Bros. (GC) with Bushido instead of butt stomping

и This infectiously fun card game got us hooked on PSO's world for a third time I Maybe—just maybe—it should have stayed lost

№ Good God, change the channel!

W Story mode injects some life into this otherwise mediocre Poké-battler

W Xbox's best and most fun racer (well, along with RalliSport 2)

W Not much of a racer, but the ladies look lovely

W Who knew driving in Sweden could be so much fun?

ША veritable cavalcade of platforming, shooting, space faring, and comedic hijinks № Guess we skipped the history lesson about the fat cowboy in a dynamite suit E Raccoon City is more like Silent Hill when you can't speak with other players

W Tap-tap your right analog stick in this repetitive brawler with 360-degree combat W Pure side-scrolling shooter bliss. Plus, it's only 30 bucks

W This samurai's game is better than expected...but still can't beat the cartoon

7.0 6.0 8.0 85 8.0 8.0 8.0 7.0 65 85 85 75 35 6.0 95 85 7.0 9.0 6.5 35 7.0 9.5 6.5 9.0 8.5 6.0 5.5 65 85 6.0

№ The series hasn't been there (Japan), but it's done that (skewer oodles of swordsmen) 7.0 и Runs a good race, but can't keep pace with RaliSport and Project Gotham Racing 2 8.8

W Never take your finger off the trigger in this dumb-but-fun first-person shooter W See hari-kari

W Addictive tactical RPG, but stil a few steps shy of Final Fantasy Tactics Advance Ii Made for the kiddies, but a fun four-player fairy tale all the same

и Battle hayseed zombies in this Silent Hil clone that's more convoluted than creepy I Personal hygiene and bodily functions have never been so much fun

E Sam's solo missions take few chances, but the multiplayer mode is revolutionary W Packs the stealth gameplay of the big-console version but none of the fun

Ш This is one online war we hope never sees a cease in hostilities

E Another bland Star Wars third-person action game? Time to drop out

W This ultradeep robo sim's horrible interface and laggy play need an overhaul

т Midway's inmate could've benefited from a few more months of rehabilitation

E Low-fever shoot-em-up contaminated by foul controls

и No need to come back, Arnold

W As hot as Tiger's bride-to-be. Well, almost

W Every form of racing devised by man... what? No mud bogging? #$@! this noise т Online play is OK, but good God, these graphics are uglier than a colon polyp ШО! Clancy's Rainbow is one of Xbox's sharpest shooters

W Too bad the dumbed-down PS2 version misses the mark

E Microsoft steps up to the service line and nails an ace with Top Spin

W Carriers that change into mile-high robots? Doesn't get much cooler than that

W There comes a point in every fighter's career when it's time to hang it up

Wi Blast a motley assortment of aliens with a motley assortment of weaponry

W Van doesn't mind biting Devil May Cry so long as he can stick it to the count

т Single-player stinks of a quick cash-in—split the bill with four friends

E Soccer action more intense than a David Beckham-Posh Spice embrace

W Receives a yellow card for its unresponsive controls and shallow gameplay options

65 35 8.0 75 50 9.0 10 45 9.0 6.0 5.0 6.5 6.5 3.5 9.0 85 45 90 50 90 80 6.0 7.0 7.0 8.0 95 65

WA half-assed strategy game plus a half-assed fighter make...well, you do the math 4.0

W We willingly tap out

W Of course it doesn't tell you that the pain won't subside for four to six weeks W A tedious story mode keeps McMahon's bunch outta the main event

№ That's an entire extra dimension of caricatured carnage! Great multiplayer fun

3.0 75 75 75

аи

greatest or miss?

MARIO GOLF: - TOADSTOOL TOUR

W GameCube

№ Released: July 2003

№ Original Scores: 8.0, 8.0, 7.5

With cinch-to-learn controls, minigames galore, and accurate physics that affect every stroke, Mario Golf proves the greens aren't just for country-clubbing geezers.

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com ® 113

trickster

We've filled

this issue with

the best of the

best, including

DRIV3R Timmy-

tagging tidbits,

how to score

sweet rewards

in The Chronicles of Riddick, as well as all the cheats you could ever want for The Suffering. And we've gone through the pain of nailing down one of the worst codes our button- mashing fingers have ever come across. Why do we subject ourselves to this torment? Because we love you, of course. We just hope you appreciate it.

— David S. J, Hodgson

GAME DIRECTORY

Fight Night Disney's Xtreme Skate Adventure .

The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay ..

Тһе ЅиНегіпд ................ 117

Worst Code Ever

W Xbox

REAKDOWN

Complete this beast of an adventure for some cool extras.

Gallery

Complete the game. Music Player Complete the game. Trailer

Complete the game. Extreme Mode Complete the game.

114 * ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www. 1UP.com

№ PS2/XB

DRIV3R

Tagging Timmies: advice city Top of the “retaliation for the nasty Driver remarks іп GTA” аге DRIV3R's version of the hidden packages. Be sure to give Timmy Vermicelli and his nine cloned friends a warm and hearty hello when you come across them in free ride mode. Tag all 10 (it doesn’t matter if you gun down all 10 at once or in multiple sittings) if you want to open the Armory and then instantly unlock a barking mad minigame.

Timmy #1 Pulling some weeds in the back garden of the house opposite Tanner’s apartment.

Timmy #2

Hiding out inside the planked-off section of the northeast floating home in Stiltsville.

Timmy #3

Planning his next set of swimming lessons on a balcony inside a boathouse known as “Dirty Dick’s.”

Timmy #4

Inside an open garage at the end of an alley in the southwest area of downtown, near the river.

tricRs of the trade

supenuicy secrets to your success

Timmy #5 Inside a garage marked “A1” on the upper area of a building in Coral Gables.

Timmy #6

Looking out over the construction yard of Tico’s site, on the upper level of a half- built home.

Timmy #7

Guarding the gate switch to access the secret go-kart track in the Water Treatment Facility.

Timmy #8 Outside a house, on the grass, just south of the running track, near the road under construction.

Timmy #9

Sipping on a delicious energy drink near an upturned vending machine in the Orange Bowl alcove under the upper stands. You get to him via the tunnel and main access path.

Timmy #10

In the elevator at the top of the Gold Coast Hotel that leads to the underground parking lot, which is accessed via the roof.

Bl Miami's secrets: cool cars, tagging Timmies, and arming yourself to the teeth.

Gunning for the Armory

Once you tag your tenth Timmy, head on over to Coral Gables and look for the ranch home marked on the map near the corner of the road heading to the Biltmore Hotel, opposite the water tower.

Inspect the backyard and you'll find a bunker entrance behind the shrubbery. Open the door and climb down into the lair of a freakish gun-nut, where ammunition, posters of babes firing assault rifles, and much more can be stolen!

Minigame mayhem: 18-wheel anarchy mode!

Emerge from the bunker and you'll discover that all the cops' Police Prowlers have been exchanged for large and extremely tough big-rigs. The fun continues as normal, except when you're

chased, expect much more of a buffeting from these huge vehicles, and don’t forget to steal one for yourself!

Secret cars

Locate one of these, and it’s instantly added to the motors you can tool around in, in free ride mode. How could you possibly ask for a sweeter prize?

Car A: Go-Kart

Press the switch inside the Water Treatment Facility (Timmy #7 is guarding it), follow the map to the go-kart track, and the vehicle is parked at the pits.

Car B: Velocity Turbo

In an alleyway between two warehouse buildings overlooking the river (and boat moorings) is the Velocity Turbo roadster, a sweet soft-top ride with exceptional handling.

Car C: TT Cuatro SuperPower

Over on Star Island, follow the road to the luxury home at the end and wait for the garage door to open. Get out of your present perambulator and get to grips with the insanely powerful TT Cuatro SuperPower—a car without equal. Watch its width, though!

W PS2/XB/GC

DISNEY'S XTREME SKATING

DVENTURE

Enter all codes in the Cheat menu.

PlayStation 2

All Create-A-Skater Items sweetthreads

All Skaters

friendsofbob

Constant Special Meter supercharger

Level Select extremepassport

Lion King Music Video savannah

Tarzan Music Video nugget

Toy Story Music Video marin

Xbox

All Create-A-Skater Items gethotgear

All Skaters xtremebuddies

Constant Special Meter happyfeet

Level Select frequentflyer

Lion King Music Video savannah

Tarzan Music Video nugget

Toy Story Music Video marin

GameCube

All Create-A-Skater Items trendytrickster

All Skaters

entourage

Level Select ambassador

Lion King Music Video savannah

Tarzan Music Video nugget

Toy Story Music Video marin >

D

Archer Maclean Presents д rM

Ф

Шы МЕ

DAYLIGHT,

COME AND YOU WANNA PLAY POOL!

СМІТОМ

ntertainment

COMING REAL SOON!

PlayStation NINTENDO GAMECUBE

EVERYONE

ambling

ESRB CONTENT RATING www.ignitionent.com

|

| к.

2

www.esrb.org

awesome

Studios orks of

nc. Digital

ЛА 2003.

tricRs of the trad

E Xbox

THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK: ESCAPE FROM BUTCHER BAY

Multiple Riddick Rewards Some of the side quests complement one another, allowing you to take in multiple rewards for completing a single task. As a rule, always take on side quests. There’s no penalty for not completing them, and most of the time you'll end up walking right by quest items while finding your way out of the prison. You've got nothing to lose and plenty to gain!

Waman and Shabby

After you take out Molina for Waman and receive pack #25, search the halls for Shabby—you can find him near the cellblock’s main gate. Apparently, he had а few problems with Molina, too, so he'll give you the key code to one of the Infirmary's doors. Be sure to grab this key code—it allows you to access a side room (to the left of the entrance) where you can pick up a scalpel and pack #12.

Rust fallout

It’s no secret that Rust is a major pain in the butt to just about everyone in cellblock A. Once you defeat him, several inmates will show their gratitude. Start with Moondog in cell A11, not far from where you downed Rust. He'll turn over pack #59 in exchange for not pummeling him to death. On your way out of Aquila territory, look for Blueboy to receive pack #57. Return to the courtyard and speak with Red to grab a few UDs. Finally, talk to Booger in the gated-off entryway of the courtyard. While he didn’t speak to

116 ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

you before, пе’! now sell you pack #26 for 20 UDs.

Booze for Chancellor

Assuming you grabbed a uniform back in the Showers level, you can walk around the Guard Quarters without drawing suspicion. In fact, you can interact with the guards and grab some loot for your troubles. In the promenade near the level’s start, speak with Jenkins. Apparently, he’s depressed about something and gives you a bottle of booze. Take the elevator to the next floor and hang a right to find Chancellor. He'll give you 50 UDs as well as pack #31 for the bottle.

Twotongue, Gulag, and Nurse Before setting foot in the Feed Ward, talk to Gulag, Nurse, and Twotongue in the recreation area. If you take all three of these quests, you should be able to complete them with one trip to the Feed Ward. After you speak with them, stop by section A and buy the shiv from Cricket. He gives Asif the money and tells him to stash it. Follow Asif into the Feed Ward, but be ready to take out Motor—he wants revenge for Harman. Down Motor to get a bottle of poison. Keep an eye on Asif and follow him to the back of the Feed Ward. Watch where he stashes the money and then wait for him to leave before opening the loose panel. Inside you can grab Gulag’s red tube, Twotongue's injector, and the 30 UDs you paid for that overpriced shiv. On the way out of the Feed Ward, stop by Binks’ food tray and sprinkle it with poison.

Now return to the rec area to get your rewards. Gulag gives you pack #3 and Nurse reciprocates with pack #32. Twotongue is a bit less generous, requiring you to defeat Bassim and collect a moth before he'll reward you. But once these relatively minor tasks are completed, Twotongue will give you pack

#55. This also opens the door to do business with Twotongue, allowing you to buy drugs as well as packs #22 and #23.

Moth hunter

As the resident drug dealer, Twotongue is more interested in attaining moths than UDs. As it turns out, the moths flying around the Double Max area have certain hallucinogenic properties, making them ideal for manufacturing “special” packs of smokes. If you want packs #22 and #23 you'll have to do some serious

moth hunting.

You can grab a moth in flight by simply looking at it and pressing X. The required 10 moths for pack #22 can all be collected in the rec area. But you'll have to look elsewhere to grab the 20 needed for pack #23. You'll have your best luck in the Upper Mines and Mining Core levels. But keep watch for guards while chasing the moths. Once you have all 20, return to Twotongue on your way to Tower 19 and collect pack #23.

Valya’s code

In the Mine Entrance level, there’s a Health Station and a pack of smokes (#37) located behind a keypad-locked door—the one with the lift in front of it. A somewhat delusional inmate named Valya is the only one with the code to this door, and getting to him isn’t very easy.

After hooking up with Jagger Valance in the Mining Core, return to the cargo transport and ride it to the third floor. Take the next hall until you spot a ventilation hatch on the wall ahead. Instead of using the hatch, turn to the left and climb on top of the stack of crates. From the crates, jump across to the duct running along the ceiling—you'll have to hit X in midair to grab on. Walk along the top of the duct until you can enter through a broken juncture. The duct leads to a set of two small rooms. In the second room you'll find Valya, watched by a guard.

т While you're in the Feed Ward,

Sneak up behind the guard and break his neck, then speak with Valya. Не’! give you the code to the locked door.

Now backtrack the way you entered, returning to the room with the wall- mounted ventilation hatch. Enter this hatch and follow the adjoining duct to the Rift elevator—be careful jumping that gap between the two ducts! Drop through the ceiling of the elevator and make your way across the bridge.

If you haven't already, deal with the two guards near the keypad-locked door, preferably using the tranquilizer gun. Now you can enter the locked room and use the Health Station. Don’t forget to grab that pack of smokes on the left crate at the back of the room, too.

№ РЅ2/ХВ

THE SUFFERING

Like a good DVD, this game gives you a director’s commentary, followed by a bevy of great codes. Oh, how we suffer.

Prelude Level

Complete the game.

Director Commentary

In the Prelude level, wait for a crow to land next to the three inmates, then stand on top of the crow.

NOTE: Enter these

codes during gameplay.

Xbox

Full Health

Hold L + R + X and press Down, A, Up, Down, Up, A

Full Xombium Bottle

Hold L + R + X and press Right, Up, A, Left, Right, A, Right, Up, Right, A Reload Ammunition for Current Gun

Hold L + R + X and press Right, Down, Up, Left, Right, Left, A

Refill Ranged Weapon Ammunition

Hold L + R + X and press Left, Up, Down, Right, Left, Right, A Shotgun with Full Ammunition Hold L + В + X and press Left, Down

All Items and Weapons Except for Gonzo Gun

Hold L + R + X and press Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, A, Up, Left, Down, Right, Up, Right, Down, Left, A, Down, A

Gonzo Gun

Hold L + R + X and press Left, A, Right, Left, Right, Left, Up, A, Down, Up, Down, Up, A

Grenades

Hold L + R + X and press Right, Left Molotov Cocktails

Hold L + R + X and press Down, Up Increase Negative Karma

Hold L + В + X and press Left, Down, Up, A

Overcome Insanity

Hold L + R + X and press Right, A,

№ XB/GC

Left, Right, Left, A

Bloody Torque

Hold L + R + X and press Up, Down, Left, Right

Clean Torque

Hold L + R + X and press Down, Up, Right, Left

Old Movie Mode

Hold L + R + X and press Up, A, Left, A, Down, A, Right, Press Start to disable this effect.

Psychedelic Mode

Hold L + R + X and press Left, A, Right, A, Up, A, Down, A

New Family Picture

Hold L + R + X and press Up, Right, Up, Right, Up, Right, A

Wrinkled Family Picture

Hold L + R + X and press Up, Right, Up

Dirty Family Picture

Hold L + R + X and press Left, Down, Left, Down, Left, Down, A Suicide

Hold L + R + X and press Down

PlayStation 2

Full Health

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Down, R2, Up, Down, Up, R2

Full Xombium Bottle

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Right, Up, R2, Left, Right, R2, Right, Up, Right, R2

Reload Ammunition for Current Gun

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Right, Down, Up, Left, Right, Left, R2 Refill Ranged Weapon Ammunition

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, Up, Down, Right, Left, Right, R2 Shotgun with Full Ammunition Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, Down

All Items and Weapons Except for Gonzo Gun

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, R2, Up, Left, Down, Right, Up, Right, Down, Left, R2, Down, R2

Gonzo Gun

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, R2, Right, Left, Right, Left, Up, R2, Down, Up, Down, Up, R2 Grenades

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Right, Left

Molotov Cocktails

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Down, Up

Increase Negative Karma

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, Down, Up, R2

Overcome Insanity

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Right, R2, Left, Right, Left, R2

Bloody Torque

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Up, Down, Left, Right

Clean Torque

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Down, Up, Right, Left

Old Movie Mode

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Up, R2, Left, R2, Down, R2, Right, R2 Psychedelic Mode

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, R2, Right, R2, Up, R2, Down, R2 New Family Picture

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Up, Right, Up, Right, Up, Right, R2 Wrinkled Family Picture

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Up, Right, Up

Dirty Family Picture

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Left, Down, Left, Down, Left, Down, R2 Suicide

Hold L1 + R1 + X and press Down

WORS CODE EVER: THE SIMPSONS: HIT & RUN

Developers spend hours upon hours refining beautiful scenery. This code shows Springfield as a development mess and only makes us ask: why?

Grid Wire Mode

During the game, pause, then go into the Option menu, hold the shoulder buttons, and press

В, A, B, Y. Hh

Real World Education

Game Design & Development

Bachelor of Science Degree Program

Associate of Sciehce & Bachelor of Science b- n Programs

800.226.7625 fullsail.com

3300 University Boulevard Winter Park, FL а

id availa

дате over

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A

Seanbaby's worst of the best of the worst

} or the normal gamer, the Electronic Entertainment Expo is a wonderland of the hottest

upcoming titles. For the normal game jour- nalist, it’s eight hours of meetings jammed between 16-hour drinking binges. Given

that game developers hate me on sight, | was lucky enough to escape these duties. For me, E3 was 30 minutes of looking for terrible games surrounded by 23-and-a- half-hour drinking binges. | left E3 with a hangover and vague memories of Power

Rangers. Plus, | think | laid Donkey Kong. From what | do remember, the main- stream videogame market still has no prob- lem generating crap. The crap in E3's off- Broadway dungeon—called Kentia Hall— though: Wow. These lunatics in a basement

[-]

t CRAP

outdid themselves again. Their third-world PC peripherals and games about ballroom dancing and pretending to be a dragon were the work of madmen—madmen who will not rest until all entertainment is con-

trolled with jumping jacks. | —Seanbaby

а Ta

Gizmondo

Besides what are

almost assuredly

going to be crappy

games, new hand-

held Gizmondo has

GPRS, MMS, GSM, WAP, and dozens of other letter combinations that meant nothing to me. My personal favorite fea- ture was “stop gameplay when battery near empty.” Look for more Gizmondo info in a few tiny sidebars in upcoming videogame magazines, followed by an interview with the creator blaming poor marketing for its spectacular failure.

Predator:

Concrete Jungle

1 credit mankind

with a handful of

genius-caliber

accomplishments:

democracy, space travel, breast implants. This Predator game for PlayStation 2 and Xbox is the culmina- tion of human achievement in one per- fect thing that isn’t a gigantic breast. As the Predator, you use invisible killing powers to stop 1920s bootleggers. Why? Maybe because it's way more awesome than any other possible idea for a game.

N-Gage

The redesigned N-

Gage QD portable

system/phone has

all the features of

the original: every

single number from 0 to 9, and it plays bad games. But if anyone had bothered to visit the N-Gage booth, QD's new enhancements would have blown their minds! You now hold it in a less stupid way, and you no longer need power tools to swap games. Say all the mean things you want because this time around...OK, you're right. It still sucks.

The Buttkicke: The Buttkicker

attaches to your

seat and sends

sound waves

directly up in you.

Good thing E3 took place in California, because after what the Buttkicker and 1 did during my rigorous testing in the hotel, many states in the Union would have declared us legally married. It's great for players who need help loosen- ing their bowels but seems specifically designed for those interested in making sweet love to their game’s audio track.

118 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

The buzz starts here for That's So Raven!, a GBA title based on a kids’ show I know noth- ing about but which caught my atten- tion due to the player's ability to move left to right and chat with school faculty members. Does the gym teacher really think Raven can achieve her dreams if she believes in herself? | dunno; | ran away once their PR people spotted me.

Russians took two of our language’s fruitiest words and combined them with dragon simu- lation to...you know what? Unless you're reading this leashed to Fabio's bed, this PC game is too fanciful for you to cope with. To play, you stand in front of a camera and flap your arms until you reach the final boss or your little brother beats you up. Whichever comes first.

It's not just for English-speaking dummies anymore! Now we've got Ponto de Cruz por za Totós, Tippen für Dummies, and my favorite, Invitations, Thank-You Notes, and Announcements for Dummies. \f you're so low that you'd take money from someone who can't write a thank- you note, just sell the moron some magic beans and be done with it. Richard.

in Xbox ballroom- | dancing game XTango, players compete in a showdown of з twirling romance. It might be the worst game idea I’ve ever heard, and I've played 19 Barbie titles, including three about dressing ponies. But the tango’s passion is a powerful seductress in this tangled web of thirsty longing, where desire is your only weapon.

“Action Stick is future of all videogame. Action Stick provides full motion with real action yourself playing martial arts games.” So reads the info sheet for this peripheral, which has you waving your hands in front of sensors instead of pressing buttons. But what Action Stick’s broken English doesn’t tell you is that when attach to martial arts game for try action go, your attacks don’t go much beyond hopping like silly ass.

Never wanted to attack your TV while wearing gloves and ankle sensors? BOXING says you do. Unfortunately, the punches in this game (which hooks right to your TV) and the ones | was actually throwing didn’t sync. To prove it was my fault, the exhibitor took over and was savagely beaten by the computer while his game ignored his every frantic punch. My the- ory: An eccentric supervillain set this booth up to laugh at spastic idiots.

Kentia "m exhibitors are the bravest people in the world. This booth had nothing more than a Nerf sword and a sensor. No silly extras like, say, a game. To his credit, the exhibitor seemed apologetic about how this was just a Nintendo Power Glove without the fun. But when you can travel thousands of miles to show off 1983 technology attached to Nerf while Halo 2 is upstairs, congrats on your huge, huge balls.

Robosapiens are tiny robots that dance, sing, rap, and fart—it was the revolutionary L- robofarting ability that almost distracted me from my journalistic duty to find out how many cats these were likely to tear apart before their eventual recall. A number which, according to the robots’ human representative was, “Ha. Very funny.” Later, the Robosapiens performed their finale with a third-grade dance troupe. There were no survivors. 9%.

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com • 119

lilustration by Eboy

Ге туте]

PLAY. COMPETE. WIN.

Register online

Register offline

GAMES" laccouca ода

amo

GF )JGAMEFLY’

Miami, FL Orlando, FL

New Orleans, LA Houston, TX San Antonio, TX Dallas, TX Atlanta, GA Nashville, TN Charlotte, NC Baltimore, MD Philadelphia, PA New York, NY Jersey City, NJ Boston, MA Columbus, OH Detroit, MI Indianapolis, IN Louisville, KY Chicago, IL Milwaukee, WI Kansas City, MO Denver, CO Seattle, WA Portland, OR San Francisco, CA San Jose, CA Las Vegas, NV Phoenix, AZ San Diego, CA Los Angeles, CA

minal first-person shooter

Devil May Gry collectibles Castlevania theme instrument

10. Like using a known software glitch to win

11. Original Tomb Raider developer

12. The Italian Job's featured car

13. Spider-Man’s main squeeze, for short

14. Peter Parker's editor, for short

16. House of the Dead 2 ax-wielding boss

20. Give your SOCOM unit a task

24. You do this when you press B in Rush 'М' Attack (NES)

25. Zelda in-game advice: “Aim at the _ of Gohma”

26. Can't use Final Fantasy Phoenix Down on this

27. Old-school baller brawler _ Rivals

28. Metal Slug engorged state

29. Silent Hill climatic feature

. Dreamcast platformer Super Magnetic _

DRIV3R mass transit vehicle

. Like Sony's PS2 Mark Simmons of Spawn.

. Peter Parker's friend Harry Madden 2004 goal (abbrv.) West-Asian region of PS2 Risk Like Xbox Live headset chat

44. Zelda: Wind Waker spandexed sprite: 45. Indigenous person of Pitfall (PS2)

Bey Spider-Man 2 nemesis : Double-jumping old man of Street Fighter Ill _ Battle or Tactics _ Uncle Ben’s Spider-Man widow RF adapter unit of resistance Circus Maximus steering wheel equivalent Boot off an online server Parker's arachnid benefactor

. SlugFest affiliated organization . Capcom's Viewtiful creation . Resident Evil search deterrent:

19. 21.

23.

29. 30. 32. 34. 36. 37. 38. 39.

41.

43.

“Nothing...”

Military Madness long-range artillery

Perennial platformer rivercraft Nyquist of Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX

Jeter of MLB 2004

First-person shooter protection mission

Highly anticipated Xbox RPG Rock eaters of N64 Zelda

Star of early Simpsons games Online, but not playing

ESRB Web suffix, for one BurgerTime weapon, en Español Real-life club for shooter fans Kirby does it all the time Rainbow Six 3 multinational organization (abbrv.)

Alien Area, to a Roman

NEXT MONTH: SEPTEMBER 2004 - ISSUE "182

ON SALE AUGUST 3 PREVIEWS !

W шшш: Invasion (P E

№ WWE Smackdown! vs. Raw (PS2) 1 № Playboy: The Mansion (Р52/ХВ)

W Def Jam: Fight for NY (PS2/XB/GC) W Advent Rising (XB)

m ox A GO RING n KIN F THE IN а Ріктіп2 (GC) 00-.. + We 7 No movie, no problem. The battle for Middle- Bl Ѕийекі (ХВ) кеу [| eis i earth rages on this fall in Electronic Arts’ The 2 Œ Crimson Tears (PS2), , ы Lord of the Rings: The Third Age. We head back D

to the land of hobbits, elves, and orcs for an exclusive in-depth exposé on the preciousss role- playing game with the potential to rule them all. ж > Plus, in Under the Radar, we'll look at some [=н underhyped yet altogether worthy upcoming titles you ЖЕ need to be aware of. We've also got the goods on the L 2 nifty new games, gadgets, technology, and trends

that'll shape your favorite hobby for the next year.

20th Century Fox Funimation Productions Ltd. ‘Square Enix U.S.A. Inc.

www.irobotmovie.com ................ 27 www.funimation.com ................. 183: www.square-enix-usa.com .......... 28-29 Activision Game Crazy Target Stores

www.activisioncom ЖИТС 4-5: hittp//www.gamecrazycom ............. 85 www.getintothegame.com ......... 1 .74a-74b Atari Hirameki International Group Ubisoft Entertainment

—

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Agreement No. 40009221. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to P.O. Box 503, RPO West Beaver Creek, Richmond НИ, ON LAB 486. I'm in а tanning booth reading Danelle Steel. And Га planting banana peels beneath every damn man's hee, Printed in the U.S.A. ©

ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY ® www.1UP.com.

game over

HSU AND CHAN'S OFFICIAL WEBSITE — WWW.APE-LAW.COM/EVILMONKEY

GREETINGS, VIDEO GAMERS! LOOK FOR FULL-LENGTH HSU & CHAN COMICS AT YOUR LOCAL COMIC SHOP! (OR ORDER ONLINE АТ WWW.SLAVELABOR.COM.)

мо CHAN

GAME DESIGNERS ARE...

А мем DISTRACTION FOR THE MORNING COMMUTE!

WHATS A DEVELOPER Жо ро?

Go ON & FACT- FINDING MISSION, OF COURSE!

PREFERABLY IN THE

копсо, ит THE AID ОҒ Tiki DRINKS!

HERE, THEN, WE PRESENT

To Чо ооё, FACT-BASED,

UNBIASED COMPARISON OF THE SONY PSP AND THE NINTENDO DS !

The PSP is Sony's entry into the world of game machines that could potentially be sewn into your abdomen by accident during major surgery. The PSP boasts ‘stunning graphics, extensive third-party support, and so many extra features that the spreading warmth you're feeling around your midsection is actually your wallet peeing itself in mortal terror.

APPEARANCE: The PSP was built around the bold design concept of "What if an Atari Lynx mated with your dad's universal remote?” Also note the large, unprotected screen, which will afford you many opportunities to scratch and filthy it up, thus showing your friends how hardcore you are.

TARGET AUDIENCE: Hardcore gamers ages 18 to 35 who are already skilled in negotiating major tech- gadget purchases with their spouses.

PERFORMANCE: The PSP is a high-performance portable, displaying graphics somewhere between the standards of the

PS1 and PS2 and increasing in quality exponentially the farther

you are from the screen. Some developers initially complained

about the PSP's insufficient memory, but they should be pleased to learn that Sony President Kaz Hirai, in a bold move, personally sneaked backstage mere moments before the PSP's unveiling and, using a pair of tweezers and a Q-tip, crammed a few extra megabytes in. Everything's cool.

BEST EXTRA FEATURE: Sony is pleased to announce that the PSP will be able to play movies and more from the tiny-yet-versatile high- density Universal Media Disc, which Sony just happens to make. ..heeeeeeeyyyy.

THE GAMES: A robust mix of sequels, ports, and spin-offs.

THE TASTE: Crunchy, almost to the point of sheer pain. Otherwise

bland, but can be made substantially saltier if used vigorously before consumption.

THE VERDICT:

122 • ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY • www.1UP.com

BUT THE TRUM, ALAS, 15 AS GRIM AS ENTERING YOUR GRAMMA IN A KICK: BOXING TOURNAMENT, AND BARELY HALF AS ENTERTAINING |

є TN THESE MODERN TIMES, GAM DESIGN 15 NO LONGER HE

WORK OF ONE OR Тую IRREDEEM-

E NERDS CRANKING OUT PA arene ост А MONTH, NEN IF THE _ OVERALL QUALITY CURRENT тти

Ыы NN im

THOUGHT ме ме: A VER,

HEY WERE BLUFFING!

INSTEAD OF DEVELOPING FOR EITHER THE 05 OR PSP, WELL SIMPLY FARM OUT SOME OF OUR EXISTING, SUCCESSFUL TITLES To OMER DEVELOPERS, WHO CAN KNOCK Us OFF SOME CHEAP, FAST PORTS FOR бота SYSTEMS! ONCE AGAIN, WE RIDE THE COWARD'S ROAD...

^o WCTORY!

GAMES ARE EXPENSIVE PROPOSITIONS, THESE DANS, EATING UP LOADS OF TIME жыр, зен M PA CANT АҒҒо! RRS eR Кыт, FLASHER TAE- PAN CONSOLE OUT THERE: CONSIDER THIS POOR TEAM, WHO SUNK EVERYTHING THEY HAD INTO DEVELOPING FOR THE N-GAGE, AND ARE Now! FORCED To CANNIBALISM TO SURVIVE!

HOA, | KNOW WHAT YOURE ALL THINKING, BUT WE AGREED То BE FAR Agout WIS.

WE DRAW STRAWS.

РЕЯ NOW,

The DS is Nintendo's next foray into the world of portable gaming. Nintendo wants it made perfectly clear to all parties that the DS is NOT a successor to the Game Boy Advance, even though it obviously is. The DS features wireless connectivity, a touch-sensitive screen, a microphone, and, of course, the fea- ture for which it was named: two screens, a design that will come in very handy the day the human eye finally gains the ability to focus in two directions at once.

APPEARANCE: The DS's unique clamshell design has won over even its harshest critics, who now agree that it can be reasonably passed off as a cosmetics case, or possibly

a digital Spanish-English dictionary, when you inevitably attempt

to sneak it into work.

TARGET AUDIENCE: Casual gamers of all ages. Nintendo's stated philosophy is that it is

looking for people who don't care if a game has flashy graphics ог not, who aren't drawn in by

the promise of complex gameplay, and most importantly, who don’t care that they're gonna be dropping 150-plus bones on a machine that they're apparently just gonna be using to play the

next version of Tetris on.

PERFORMANCE: The Nintendo DS offers a gaming experience comparable to what you would find on the Nintendo 64, had

Rube Goldberg designed it while living on the Planet of the. Vertically Bioptic Mutant Gamers. Nintendo stays true to

its philosophy of keeping the gameplay simple by presenting game developers with the tools necessary to create control systems more convoluted than could even be dreamed up

by Satan himself. То be fair, however, even a cursory glance at the demos on display at the Electronic Entertainment Expo reveals

that Nintendo has made bold and decisive strides in virtual pinching,

stretching poking, and dragging technologies.

BEST EXTRA FEATURE: The Nintendo DS features complete backwards compatibility with all Game Boy Advance games.

But it's NOT a successor to that system. No, seriously, Nintendo means it

THE GAMES: A robust mix of sequels, ports, and spin-offs.

THE TASTE: The Nintendo DS tastes EXACTLY like a delicious honey-baked ham.

UNT. NEXT MONTH, VIDEO GAMERS, THIS 15 HSU TANAKA REMINDING: оу THAT ORIGINALITY COSTS MONEY! CASH MONEY! МАМОО5Е!

Make friends. Play online games: ——*

ум Download Mountain Dew DC XFIRE

at mountaindew.com / gaming m

@ MOUNTAIN DEW IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF PEPSICO, INC.

JEAN RENO AND TAKESHI KANESHIBO

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Character Samanosuke by ©Fu Long Production, ©САРСОМ CO., LTD. 2004 ©САРСОМ U.S.A., INC. 2004 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CAPCOM and the Capcom logo are registered trademarks of Capcom Co., Ltd. ONIMUSHA 5 a trademark of Capcom Co., Ltd. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners.

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