SUPER MARIO SUNSHINE: A GUIDE TO ALL120 SHINES

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www.playstation.com

PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. "Live In Your World. Play In Ours." is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus is a trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Developed by Sucker Punch Productions LLC 002 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association.

Mild Violence

Ме" ЕШР" ——

SS

One cunning devious thievius raccoonus.

Stealing is never condoned, unless you're Sly Cooper. A notorious raccoon thief on a mission to stéal back his family's most prized possession. Using a repertoire of sneaky moves, you'll go from one impossible job to the next using cugning skills and maneuvers to infiltrate the most secure places in the world. Spotlights, alarms, infrared lasers and tripwires are no match for this raccoon. Because when you're as good as he is, grabbing priceless jewels and emptying casinos is like taking candy from a baby.

Raccoor

حح

PlayStation.@

BEFORE THE MANSION. BEFORE THE DISASTER. EVIL IS

RATING PENDING

Visit wwwesrb.org NINTENDO or call 1-800-771-3772 @ GAM —— L9 e 1 formore info. 2 E SUBE. c 3 p com.com ESRB

© CAPCOM CO., LTD. 1996, 2002 © CAPCOM U.S.A., INC. 1996, 2002. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CAPCOM and the CAPCOM LOGO are registered trademarks of CAPCOM CO., LTD. RESIDENT EVIL is a registered trademark of CAPCOM CO., LTO. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. LICENSED BY NINTENDO. Nintendo, Nintendo GameCube and the Official Seal are trademarks of Nintendo. © 2001 Nintendo.

GET A GOOD DOSE or EVIL

WHEN YOU ENTER THE ULTIMATE SURVIVAL HORROR

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Win Nintendo GameCube™ gear, Resident Evil9 games and other prizes!

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Fight for survival in this action-packed thriller {% (Register online or by mail. with an all-new story line! See website for details.

Must be 18 years or older.)

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The brand-new Zero chapter- only on Nintendo GameCube"!

Introducing a new playable character, nightmarish E and non-stop terror.

‘ALL AMERICANS PLEDGE

You're one of the most highly-trained U.S. warfare experts on the planet. Put your skills to the test as you battle your way through fifteen levels of realistic tactical combat. When the brass wants a target secured, they send in a platoon. When they want a target erased, they

send in your squad of four U.S. special forces. This is the part of the war that the media didn't cover. Welcome to Desert Storm.

WWW.GOTHAMGAMES.COM/CONFLICT

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poration in the U.S.

"PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and the Xbox logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microso! and/or other countries. Nintendo GameCube® and the Nintendo GameCube logo are trademarks of Nintendo. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. Gotham Games and the Gotham Games logo are trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Conflict: Desert Storm and the Conflict: Desert Storm logo are trademarks of SCi Games Ltd. E&OE © 2002 Take-Two Interactive, Inc. All rights reserved.

МУМУ ХУ US LEUE OGRA TEES, COI

Licensed by Nintendo, Nintendo, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance and the Official Seal are trademarks of Nintendo. ©2001 Nintendo. Eye of the Beholder ©2002 Infogrames, Inc. All rights reserved. Wizards of the Coast, D&D, the Dungeons and Dragons logo and the Wizards of the Coast logo are registered trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc, a subsidiary of Hasbro, inc. and are used by permission. All other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Manufactured and marketed by Infogrames, Inc., N.Y., N.Y.

f INFOGRAMES

www.BruteForceGame.com

FOUR RUTHLESS MERCENARIES. ONE HOSTILE UNIVERSE. IT’S A MATCH MADE IN HELL.

The year is 2340 and more than fifty star systems are populated with colonies. But when an alien invasion threatens to put every living organism on the endangered species list, the Confederation of worlds must dispatch its elite special forces unit, code-named Brute Force. That's you. As Brute Force, you are four separate intergalactic mercenaries. The trigger- happy assault trooper, cyborg sniper, stealthy assassin and feral alien are all played by you. As you guide these shooters through 20+ missions and six exotic worlds, your knowledge of combat survival tactics will be severely tested. Depending on what the enemy throws at you, you'll need to switch between squad members and use their specialized individual skills. Whether you play alone or in co-op mode with three friends, the

hattles escalate, the plot thickens and the violence gets

addictive. Good luck. To all four of you.

m DANGEROUS ALONE DEADLY TOGETHER

ONLY ON > | XBOX

www.xbox.com XBOX

EINFORM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FEATURE THE SIMS

Simulate the world! Maxis is planning a full-out assault on the Sims franchise with expansion packs, new PC games, and а PS2 title. Moral

conundrums aside, Sims rocks.

COVER STORY FEATURE 32 DEVIL MAY CRY 2 WHO'S GOT GAME?

Apparently, Dante's been working out since last we saw him. A For the first time in Gl, basketball is finally getting the attention it veritable cornucopia of new moves awaits the intrepid gamer deserves. Think about the squeaking parquet floor, monogrammed that picks up Devil May Cry 2 in the beginning of 2003. Can't sneakers, self-indulgent slam dunks, and pressure-laden free throw wait to know what's coming? Check out our feel on the new attempts. Live these dreams without all that pesky working out.

targeting system, controls, and graphics.

É 10 GAME INFORMER

| “A brilliant game" - Nintendo Power | | "Lunks like one of the best FPS yet. Ше can't wait." - РБП | “the best-looking first-person shooter currently in development for PS2." - Gamespot.cogm | "..8 true heir tn GoldenEye ..sn polished it shines." - НВОН Nation | “TimeSolitters а is going to be awesome.” - IGN.com

THE MOST ACCLAIMED GAME OF 2002

LITTERS

3S GAME:COM,

(© 2002 Free Radical Design Limited. TimeSplites 2, foe (acris Inc. "Piston and he PS! Fay Sand tho Nintendo GameCube

Froo Radical Das

m Ta are radere о fondo.

f Egos interactive, Inc: © 2002 rom croson. ТМ,

|

Е DITOR'S FORUM Xbox: t he sleeping giant? Our Editor in Chief takes on the console wars with recklesss abandon.

GI SPY The Ga me Informer paparazzi stalks the video game industry, bringing you candid photos of all the action.

BP EAR GI Swisshirag aside that tiny problem of h avirhg to make online games profitable. Everything you wanted to know a bout cel shading and Latin but were aff raid to ask. We can't believe it's Fac»io.

NEEWS All the mews that's fit to print - and even m ore that isn't. Take a look-see at what- Jet Li is cooking up with Sony, ther ta ke a seat for some interesting new s a bout Square and Nintendo's Game E3oy Advance. Plus, find out why Dave Mirra pulled out early.

P REVIEWS No Flowery language needed. Graradicose previews for Grand Theft Auto: V асе City, Ratchet & Clank, Panzer Dragoon Orta, Doom Ill, Halo 2, Tony Heawk’s Pro Skater 4, D&D Heroes and Wa г of the Monsters. Our deal with the dev il starts in mere hours.

12 GAME INFORMER

REVIEWS Disney and Square team up to make our Game of the Month, and it really is that good. Franchises making an appearance include: Tekken, Need for Speed, Turok, and Castlevania; while a few newbies with promise (Gungrave, Animal Crossing, and Dual Hearts) get the GI grilling. Buffy and the Terminator grace the Xbox with some cine- matic brawling.

CHARTS J What's hot? What's 7 not? What's up? What's down? It's not NASDAQ, it's the Retail Sales Data and the GI editors’ Top 10 Games.

PLAY TO PERFECTION Is that Mario just trying to take a freakin’ vaca- tion? Toss a guy a bone and finish the game so he can get back to his all-inclusive beachside cabana. Play to Perfection walks you to each

and every Shine, leaving a sense of accomplishment only rivaled by that time you read War and Peace. Right.

SECRET ACCCESS It's cheater-riffic! Don't feel guilty that you can’t beat that game on your own — why do you think we're here?

CLASSIC GI

All access to the Classic Gaming Expo 2002, a weekend fest to revere the games and systems of yesteryear held in classy Las Vegas. An ode to Adventures of Lolo, an old-school puzzle game involving eggs, shooting

monsters, and bridges. And what really happened this month in gaming?

ETC

Sadly, the Video Game Bible lacks the whimsy and multiple creation stories of the Bible, but still holds a bounty. Nintendo releases | another accessory. Lucas heeds

the cries of millions and McFarlane is finally challenged on the action figure front.

GAME INDEX

Game Page АЕО 87. Aliens vs. Predator 2:

Primal: Нит ШЕ... 4 93 Animal Crossing ....... 86 Buffy The Vampire Slayer .. . .88

Castlevania:

Harmony of Dissonance . . . .94 Chase: Hollywood Stunt Driver 91 Deathrow... Ed

Defender ....

Dino Stalker

Disney Golf

Doom Ill .....

Dual Hearts й Duke Nukem Advance ...... 94 Dungeons & Dragons Heroes .70 Dynasty Warriors 3 ......... 91 Egg Мапа... 94 Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ..58 Gun Metal ... 91 Gungrave .. 85 Halo2 2...2 64 Icewind Dale Il ............ 92

Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer (PS2) 84 Kelly Slater's Pro Surfer (Xbox)91 Kingdom Hearts ........... Legaia 2: Duel Saga . . Medieval: Total War . . Mobile Suit Gudam: Federation vs. Zeon ....... 84 Myst IIl: Exile Mystic Heroes NASCAR Dirt to Daytona ... .73 NASCAR Thunder 2003 (GC) .87 NASCAR Thunder 2003 (PS2) 82

NBA Live 2003 ............ 51 NBAKO а: hb 53 NBA Inside Drive 2003 252 NBA ShootOut 2003 .. 54 NBA Starting Five ..........55 Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 280 МЕ В 2003 84 Panzer Dragoon Orta . 62 Ratchet & Clank ..... 60 Robotech: Battlecry ........ 89 Scorpion King:

Rise of the Akkadian, The . . .87 Sega GT 2002 ............ 90 SimCity 4 .. ...46 Sims, The ........ ...42 Sims Online, The .. ‚44 Sims Unleashed, The . 45 Super Monkey Ball 2 .......87 Tekken 4 ................ 78

Terminator:

Dawn of Fate, The (PS2) .. .84 Terminator:

Dawn of Fate, The (Xbox) . . .91 Tomb Raider: The Prophecy . .73 Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 . . . .66 Turok: Evolution (PS2) ...... 82 Turok: Evolution (Xbox) .... . 90 Unreal 2: The Awakening ....68 War of the Monsters ........ 70 ХХ 94

IN THE DARKEST HOUR AHERO 15 RE BORN.

Visit wwwesrb.org or call 1-800-771-3772

for more info. T 100% GAMES

"Тесто, Ine, PMB #5553 21213-8 Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance, CA 90503 p (310) 944-5005 f (310) 944-3344 Rygar: The Legendary Adventure™. Tecmo, LTD 2002. Тесто and the Tecmo logo are registered TWademarks of Tecmo LTD. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. "PlayStation" and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

RENEW YOUR SUBSCRIPTION NOW!

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Don't delay! Send in the subscription card inside or, for faster service, order with credit card by calling (612) 486-6100.

14 GAME INFORMER

AMEINFORM

OCTOBER 2002 Volume ХИ ® Number 10 • Issue 114

®

Cathy Preston

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Andrew McNamara

EDITORS

Executive Editor Andrew Reiner Senior Associate Editor Matt Helgeson Associate Editors Kristian Brogger • Justin Leeper • Matthew Kato • Chet Barber Copy Editor/Contributing Writer Lisa Mason Mascot Arthur

PRODUCTION

Art Director Thomas Blustin Production Director Curtis Fung Production Assistant Rachel Gilles

ADVERTISING SALES

Rob Borm Doug Faust (612) 486-6155 * Fax (612) 486-6101 (650) 728-5647 Fax (650) 728-5648 rob@gameinformer.com doug@gameinformer.com

Advertising Account Executive Amy Arnold ® (612) 486-6154 amy@gameinformer.com

CIRCULATION CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT For change of address or subscription inquiry only: phone: (612) 486-6100 Fax: (612) 486-6101 email: customerservice@gameinformer.com or send correspondence to: 724 North First St., 4th Floor e Minneapolis, MN 55401 e Attn: CIS Dept

Circulation Manager Paul Anderson (612) 486-6104 paul@gameinformer.com

SUNRISE PUBLICATIONS, INC President John Woodson

Manufactured and printed in the United States of America The Editor welcomes company product information for all video games. Such materials should be addressed to: Editor, Game Informer& Magazine, 724 North First St., 4th Floor, Minneapolis, MN 55401. Unsolicited manuscripts cannot be returned or acknowledged. Entire contents copyright 2002. Game Informer& Magazine. All rights reserved; reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Game Informer is a trademark of GameStop, Inc. Products named in these pages are trade names, or trademarks, of their respective companies, PUBLISHER LIABILITY FOR ERROR The publisher shall not be liable for slight changes or typographical errors that do not lessen the value of ап advertisement. The publisher's liability for other errors or omissions in connection with an advertisement is limited to republication of the advertisement in any subsequent issue or the refund of any monies paid for the advertisement. INDEMNIFICATION The advertiser and/or Advertising Agency agrees to defend and indemnify the publisher against any and all liability, loss, or expense arising from claims of libel, unfair competition, unfair trade practices, infringement of trademarks, copyrights, trade names, patents, or proprietary rights or Violation of rights of privacy, resulting from the publication of the Advertiser's statement.

©

Member Audit Bureau of Circulations

PlayStation.?

THE WIND CHANGES DIRECTION, YOU'RE DONE.

с 4 YOU CAST A SHADOW, YOU’RE DONE. LIVE IN YOUR WXRLD

= : PLAY IN DURS* "i >

— жк

STIR UP THE BIRDS, YOU’RE DONE.

CHOOSE THE WRONG ESCAPE ROUTE, YOU'RE DONE

x FORGET TO HIDE A BODY, YOU'RE DONE.

„к r1 E SMELLS YOU, YOU'RE DONE.~ # iP V m : Lm d

|: ви

$ { STEP ON THE LEAVES, оч DONE. ‚ ч

TAKE THEM OUT IN THE WRONG ORDER, YOU’RE DONE. STER ОМА STOK YOU'RE DONE.

at, your first mistake is your last. ing сузе allı

Violence, Blood and Gore

“PlayStation” and the “PS” Family logo аге! America Inc. ©2002 Sony Computer Entertair

m 4 b. Р

3

I'd like to thank all the Xbox and GameCube fans out there who let me know on a daily basis that Game Informer is a PlayStation 2-biased magazine and that their respective systems "rule." Not only are they enlightening, they keep my email program busy. Luckily, the influx of comments such as these has brought me to this month's topic: the system wars.

Now, I'm not trying to defend PlayStation 2 – or any other system for that matter – I'm just trying to look at the industry from where I'm sitting. Contrary to the lovely comments | noted earlier, Game Informer is not pro-Sony. However, the PlayStation 2 is the most popular gaming platform available today. This is a fact - no other console manufacturer has nearly as many units in consumers’ hands.

Does that mean it's the best? No. Does it mean it's the most talked about? Certainly. So, with that fact taken into consideration, let's look at what GameCube and Xbox have in store. Frankly, | have been quite impressed with Nintendo's recent resurgence. Not only has it managed to secure lots of third-party product (which it was unable to do on the N64), it has also filled the months with lots of landmark Nintendo titles as well as a couple of high-profile

XBOX: THE SLEEPING

GIANT?

e

exclusives. | still think Nintendo is a little "kid-centric," but it is definitely showing some signs of putting up a fight.

Things are a little different in the Microsoft camp. There is little doubt that Xbox is the most powerful console on the market. When a game is done right on the system, stand back - because it's gonna leave any and all competition in the dust. Microsoft has done an excellent job of fixing its position in the market in many areas (especially by introducing the Controller S, which rights one of my biggest complaints with the system). Unfortunately, unique and compelling software titles are few and far between for Xbox. Of course, Halo is an amazing game. If Microsoft had released a game the caliber of Halo every two months over the last year, | think the landscape of the market would be significantly different.

Looking at Microsoft's plans for next year, including titles such games as Halo 2 and Project Ego just to name a few, it looks like it will have the ammunition it needs to compete in the console wars. Now, it's just a question of whether it's too little, too late. | certainly hope not, as | would truly love to see all systems do equally well — if for no other reason than to stop those Andy McNamara

annoying emails. Editor andy@gameinformer.com

mmm apt A

Allier see

The overly enthusiastic editorial staff finally gets out of the office on a summer road trip. (Left to right) Kristian, Arthur, Matt, Chet, Justin, Lisa, Reiner, and Kato set off road rage and fray Andy's nerves to the breaking point, as he threatens to turn around the car and head back home.

16 GAME INFORMER

REINER, THE RAGING GAMER reiner@gameinformer.com

Before you delve deeply into my incoherent ramblings about everything and nothing, do те a favor and read Justin's blurb. 15 it just me, or is The Digital Deviant admitting that he's a chick? | mean, it sounds like he's goofing around, but the joke doesn't end. А sensitive guy, huh? You know what? | should have seen this coming. | was going to say something to him when he was roller-skating around the office singing "Oops! | Did It Again" with a foot-long corn dog in his hand, but | figured it was just a phase, or puberty finally kicking in. Pretty soon we won't have any guys working here any more. Who saming really is for girls! P.S. Fabio is hot!

KRISTIAN, THE VIDEO VIKING kristian@gameinformer.com

Since you and | have a relationship built on a solid foundation of truth and openness, | have to come clean with you: | hated the moniker, "the Game Dawg." I'm using the word hate here about this name — are you following me? So, instead of writing long diatribes about how | abhor my handle but "oh well,” I've decided to make a clean break and start fresh. Now that I've had a couple of years to think about a new one, | think the Video Viking fits me fairly well. It might not be what you're used to, but | think we'll all get along great. At least it's a little less lame...right?

- JUSTIN, THI

2 Ў ۴ f KATO, THE GAME KATANA kato@gameinformer.com Last month, when | did the unthinkable and reviewed this year's round of football games, who would have thought that absolutely nobody would be happy with my scores? | got PR people, Madden

fans, and even my brother hounding me about this or that. Well, here are а few cold, hard truths for some of you out there. 1.) I'm right — deal with it. 2.) Madden is neither a 10 nor exactly the same as last year 3.) Anyone who thinks NFL Fever is the best football game out there is confused. Frankly, who gives a damn? Buy what you want to buy, and let's all call it a day. In the grand scheme of things, it's all just a pimple on a blind man's ass anyway.

ЕТ,

lisa@gameinformer.com

We call these things blurbs. Did you know that? Dictionaries describe blurb n. as "A brief publicity notice, as on a book jacket." Therefore, Game Informer is an epic coming-of-age tale about a boy who meets а girl іп a castle and needs to get away from his over-protective mother who is involved simultaneously in a government cover-up of covert actions abroad and a harrowing murder mystery. This boy was born in a log cabin that he helped his father (now deceased via car accident) build. He is coming to terms with the fact that a distant relative at one time knew a strange girl who changed their life by showing them how to live.

Death is my business and business is good.

Blood Strong Sexual Content 4 : PC А ы CD PlayStation.e " hitman2.com

2002 IO Interactive, Human 2 Sint Assasin а adorat of Eidos Interactive, Eidos, Eidos Interactive, and tho Eidos Interactivo logo aro registered trademarks o Eidos interactivo. Ine Al fights reserved: IO Interactivo andthe 1O ела обо re trademarks of IO Interactive. "PlayStation" and the “PS Family logo are regsord trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox, and the Xbox Logos аге ether registred trademarks or trademarks of Microsclt Corporation in the United States andlor other countries and are used under license from Microsoft The ratings соп isa registered trademark of he Interactive Digital Soltware Association.

D ° ` CANDID PHOTOS FROM THE 4 | SEAMY UNDERBELLY OF THE 4 ; VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY

_ 1 GameSpy's Raymond Padilla cools off with а

8 taste of Kemco's Batman: Dark Tomorrow ice sculpture. We won't tell you what he did to the hors d'oeuvres. 2 Kristian demonstrates the № proper technique for using a deadly disc, err,

Ё paper plate for Tron 2.0 producer Cliff Kamida “ and Disney Interactive marketing director Jamie Berger. Thankfully, he didn't show them the Jeff. Bridges tattoo on his bum. 3 Freelancer Tom Ham investigates the golf course death of a giant inflatable lizard. 4 Midway's Wayne Cline, Dennis Roy, and Jay Boor prepare to bungee jump off Game Informer's balcony. 5 Writer Peter Suciu and EA's Dana Whitney discuss the sorry state of their 401k accounts at Camp EA in San Carlos. 6 "Hey, sailor, you lookin' for a good time?" These Ozzfest lovelies are looking for some action in the PlayStation 2 tent. Yikes! 7 Former . Intellivision executive/Tron: Solar Sailor program-

' mer Keith Robinson shows off his signage at the Classic Game Expo. 8 Bill Linn brings back mem- ories of Babe Ruth during an Infogrames-spon- sored golf event at the Half Moon Bay resort.

18 GAME INFORMER

N

Bound by family blood, He. must return

to) the castle.

amid the

Z

"Harmony of Dissonance

Animated Blood

GAME BOY ADVANCE [аул Mild Violence

KONAMI®, CASTLEVANIA® and Harmony of Dissonance™ are either registered trademarks or trademarks of KONAMI CORPORATION. © 1986, 2002 KONAMI & KONAMI COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT TOKYO ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. TM, ® and the Game Boy Advance logo are trademarks of Nintendo. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association.

The debut of Sony's Network Adaptor is upon us, so here's what | think about it. It's definitely got potential, and it avoided the big hang-up | had with SegaNet — no AOL support. I'm not about to pay for another ISP just to play console games.

| do think Sony's got a good thing going — no initial sign-on fees, decent third-party support, etc. Still, one thing | need to make clear to game makers is that we don't want to be milked for the rest of our lives just to play a вате! If you charge из to play Final Fantasy Xl or other games on a monthly basis, people aren't going to want to dabble and experiment. They simply won't start at all. Instead, charge MORE for each copy of the game (say, $100 or So) and make all online play free, especially for games like FF ХІ that feature no real offline play. | would gladly have paid $80 or so for EverQuest for my PC and then never had to pay another dime to play it. As is, | never got into it at all. | think people would be more willing to try out online stuff this way, particularly on consoles, which require shucking out $300 every five years instead of $100 for a new video card, like PCs.

On а console, we're all on a level playing field, and cutting out monthly fees will help us forge a difference between the PC online experience and the console online experience. It could make or break the future of online console gaming. | sure as hell don't want to get a monthly credit card statement with 100 different charges from 100 different game companies just to play their damn games online. If that's how they want to play, then | simply won't. One down, 10 million to go.

Mark Buckingham Via aol.com

We're excited about Sony Online (and Xbox Live) as well, and - as game journalists are a notoriously miserly breed – we don't like paying for things any more than you do. You raise an interesting point about pay-to-play models turning off more casual consumers that might want to experiment with online gaming, but we'd be surprised if we didn't see a good number of games that require a monthly subscription fee in the next year. Massively multiplayer titles like EverQuest and Final Fantasy XI require a tremendous investment — in technology, servers, customer service, and main- tenance - on the part of publishers, and subscription fees are really the only way to offset those costs. Your idea of charging a higher retail price at the outset is interesting, but, as in the case of EQ, people often MMORPGs over a number of years, and $100 at the outset wouldn't be enough to keep the process of run- ning them profitable over the long haul.

Still, although pay-to-play is definitely in our future, we do expect that this will be the exception, not the

rule. Most upcoming action games should have online multiplayer fea- tures that will not require a sub- scription, and most pay-to-play games offer a free month with pur- chase, so you'll be able to get enough gratis gaming goodness to satisfy your needs. Of course, you'll still need to pay for an ISP and - in the case of Xbox Live – a charge for network service.

You guys mention cel shading a lot, like in your GameCube Zelda pre- views. What exactly is cel shading? If you posted it in an earlier issue, I completely missed it. Pat Countryman Via email

Generally, cel shading refers to a technique that devel- opers use to create a 3D rendered character that looks like a hand-drawn animation cel. Usually, there will be black "ink" outlines drawn around the edges of the different sections of the character, and they will be filled in with simple colors. Real-time shading can be used, but it is often simplified to resemble comic book-style shadowing. Although the model is still three-dimensional, the effect is close to that of the classic cartoons of the '40s and '50s. The Legend of Zelda for GameCube utilizes an advanced form of cel shading, and doesn't exhibit much use of black outlin- ing on its characters. Other famous examples of this technique are Jet Set Radio Future and Monster Rancher 3. A special thank you goes out to Jennifer Hachigian for answering some of our questions about the subject. For further information on cel shading, go to her excellent website, www.celshader.com.

Next month, we will be updating our Newbie Cheat Sheet to include a definition for cel shading. If our readers have any other technical terms that need to be added to the list, let Dear GI know, and we'll do our best to find the facts behind the jargon.

| was recently browsing through my NES games, when | looked at the cover of the game lronSword. On the cover is Fabio, the model who can't believe it’s not butter! Sean Via aol.com

Those glistening pecs, that flowing hair, the sultry come-hither look in his eyes – who other than Fabio could make the cover of IronSword so captivating? Nobody, that's who.

Certainly not you, you little geeks! AKlaim

You're not as sexy as Fabio; you'd hardly be fit for the cover of a container of Shedd Spread, much less ICBINB (that's how the cool kids abbreviate | Can't Believe It's Not Butter, suckers). Inspired by Sean's letter, we posted our copy of IronSword on eBay, hop- ing that fellow Fabiophiles would run the bidding up into the thousands of dollars. The bidding ended at $2.45, proving that good taste is dead in this world of ours. In sadness, we buried IronSword in a hermetical- ly sealed time capsule, hoping that future generations will have a greater appreciation of Fabio's beauty. Sigh. For now, let's all have a gander at IronSword's captivating cover art.

This is something that just crossed my mind. Maybe it can shed some light on the "Cel-da" situation we are all familiar with. The team that first started working on Zelda for the GameCube released beautiful screenshots of a fight between Link and Ganon at Space World a few years ago. This means they had already started pro- duction on this title. They probably already had a story- line as well – perhaps something along the lines of a sequel to Ocarina of Time. The quality of the graphics we saw was amazing, and amazing graphics don't come cheap. Neither do production artists and programmers. Why is it that an entire storyline and game concept were scrapped? Many have hypothesized that the screenshots and video we saw of Link and Ganon were just screens from Super Smash Bros. Melee. But, upon further investigation, the character models of SSBM and the amazing Zelda we saw do not look similar in the least. My theory is that the game was not scrapped, but hidden — hidden to be worked on and fin- ished before the death of the GameCube.

Stony Browder

Via aol.com

We've received a lot of similar theories about the eventual return of the adult Link in recent months. On one level, it's an attractive theory, and makes enough sense that many people online have already begun to speculate about the future of the series beyond the release of next year's The Legend of Zelda for GameCube. Unfortunately for fans that were thrilled by the promotional clip that you are referring to, there aren't any hard facts to back up these claims that the adult Link game is a reality. According to Nintendo, that vision of Zelda was cancelled for one reason and one reason only – Shigeru Miyamoto was not happy with the game's progress up to that point and wanted to pursue another direction. Now, it's possible that he could hold that version of the game back in devel- opment for a few years, but all indica- tions seem to point to the fact that he simply changed his mind about the game's visual look. In the world of

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Nintendo, Miyamoto gets what Miyamoto wants. As for your claims that Nintendo wouldn't have spent so much money creating that video if it wasn’t serious, we don't think that holds water, either. The video you're referencing was clearly not gameplay. A compa- ny like Nintendo, with a tremendous amount of in- house talent and technology, could easily produce a short CG clip of that nature for a reasonable amount of cost and man-hours. In all reality, it was probably nothing more than an internal GameCube technology test. So, while it's fun to speculate about the future, "Cel-da" is the Zelda we're going to get, and we couldn't be more pleased with what we've seen of the game so far. Now, let's all just relax and get ready to enjoy The Legend of Zelda, which should be one of the highlights of the next few years in gaming.

You suck. | love you. Chang Cheng Via email

Good show, sir!

Why is Deus Ex called "Deus Ex?" It doesn't make any sense; it's Latin, and it translates to "God Ош." But God out of what? It makes no sense. | demand an explanation. Jack Soncrack Via yahoo.com

DEMAND? YOU DEMAND АМ EXPLANATION FROM A GOD?! ILL FLAME YOUR ASS, MORTAL! .^

Deus Ex is an abbreviation of "deus ex machina," a Latin phrase that literally means "god from the machine." This phrase is usually used to describe an unexpected or artificial plot device that is used to solve a convoluted or difficult problem in a play or film. For example, the sequence in Attack of the Clones when Yoda arrives at the coliseum to save the Jedi with a ship full of clone troopers could be consid- ered a deus ex machina. This phrase stems from ancient Greek and Roman dramas, in which a god would be lowered onto the stage by means of a crane in order to resolve the story. The term can also be applied to any unexpected, real-life turn of events that fixes a dilemma, which is probably the meaning that inspired the titling of Deus Ex.

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HONG KONG ACTION COMING TO A PS2 NEAR YOU!

Sony has announced a new first-party game in the works for the PlayStation 2, called Rise to Honor. The title, which stars famous action movie star Jet Li, was first shown to the press at Sony's recent Gamers Day in San Francisco, and should come out in the fall of 2003.

Rise to Honor was originally conceived by Sony's Foster City Studio as a way to bring Hong Kong action movie-styled fighting to the PS2. Coincidentally, Jet Li, star of The One and Kiss of the Dragon, called up Sony with a desire to be involved in a video game. "When we began the concept stages for Rise to Honor more than three years ago, we knew we wanted it to be based on the style of a Hong Kong action movie," said Jim Wallace, Foster City Studio's associate director. "We had Jet Li posters all over the studio, and were referencing his movies for everything we had planned in the game. We were thrilled when we found out that Jet was interested in collaborating on a PlayStation 2 pro- ject, knowing that his creative input on Rise to Honor would help us truly realize our vision for this ambitious game."

Li was tapped to do motion-capture work for the project, and even brought with him famed fight coordinator Corey Yuen, who staged bat- tles in X-Men, Kiss of the Dragon, and many others. With their sugges- tions and the original concept behind Rise to Honor, the game greatly expands upon what has previously been done in video game brawlers. Main character Kit Yun (Jet Li) has a flurry of kicks and punches, as well as fluid blocks and counters. These are crucial, since Kit will go up against multiple adversaries simultaneously. He can also run up and along walls or flip off of them to escape danger, as the bad guys don't always play fair.

Nearly everything within the environment can be used to your advan- tage. This includes turning tables over for cover, hitting enemies with a roast duck, and tossing chairs through windows to open up new areas. One stage we saw depicted a fight through a restaurant. Highlights included tossing a foe onto a burning stovetop, as he panicked in pain; and grabbing another assailant from behind, then dunking him headfirst into a dishwater-filled sink. Did we mention taking on some bad bikers while they were on their motorcycles? That was pretty cool, too. Kit Hun won't tackle everything unarmed, though, and Rise to Honor also includes some gunplay, complete with nifty targeting and slinking against walls.

"Working with the Foster City Studio team to create a game for PlayStation 2 has been an exiting experience — very differ- ent from making a movie," said Jet Li. "The motion-capture sys- tem allows for extremely realis- tic movements and, in addition, we were able to use a lot of actions in the game that we can't normally put in a film. The results in the final game should provide the player with a gen- uine feel for action."