FINAL FANTASY IX WALKTHROUGH INSIDE

AMENEORM

THQ'S FIRST-PERSON EVOLUTION ELECTRIFIES PS2 & PC

Who's The King Of The Ring? First Reviews Of , SmackDown 2, No Mercy, & Backstage Assault

Uncover Locations For New Pokémon, Learn Evolution Techniques, & Participate In Timed Events With Our Amazing Strategy Guide

METAL BLACK Sweet Tooth Stalks

The PS2 In Sony's Sinister Sequel

The Final Word On Computer & Video Games

Microsoft Recruits Heavy Hitters To Fuel Xbox Fire

Holiday Sam Illustrates Methods To Trick Your Parents Into Buying The Perfect Gift

An Exclusive Look

At Upcoming Resident Evil, Zelda, ; Space Channel 5, & EverQuest Toys

U.S. $4.99 Canada $6.99

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ISSUE

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Sir Pedro II

Guess which emperor needs your help? Enperor Kuzcoishavinga bday- it seems he's been turned into a Пата. It's your job to give him a hand, or, in this case, a hoof. Travel as a llama through fantastic, ancient worlds in your quest to find the magic potion that will turn Kuzco back into an emperor. Watch out,

though, because you'll get turned into a turtle, a rabbit and a frog along the way. It's jammed full of wisecracking movie

clips, puzzles, races and, of course, tons of Пата attitude. Remember, this is one pack animal that packs a mean punch.

on and the PI logos are registered trademark прег Entertainment Inc.

Sir Ferdinand I

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See the movie in theaters

December 15, 2000

Sir Napoleon Sir Maximilian І

Sir Kuzco (duh...it's me.) Sir Rudolf II

PlayStation

A DARK FUTURE... AN UNCERTAIN PAST...

no One LEFT TO TRUST.

AN INTENSE ACTION THRILLER COMES TO LIFE WITH EXCITING ANIME STYLE CHARACTERS AND STORYLINE.

REVOLUTIONARY GAMEPLAY BLEND OF HAND TO HAND AND WEAPONS COMBAT.

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THE ARSENAL OF WEAPONS INCLUDES PISTOLS, ROCKET LAUNCHERS, ENERGY AND PROJECTILE WEAPONS.

“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. Dark Horse Comics® and the Dark Horse logo are trademarks of Dark Horse Comics, Inc., registered in various categories and countries. All rights reserved. Rockstar Games and the Rockstar Games logo are trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. © 2000 All rights reserved.

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FEATURE PLASTIC FANTASTIC: VIDEO GAMES TAKE OVER THE TOY MARKET

Over the last five years, video game toys

have grown from a small niche market to one of the largest and most lucrative sectors of the toy business. ey This month, \ Game Informer goes on location to Palisades, who will be bring- ing us new Final Fantasy

and Resident Evil toys, to learn how they turn digital visions into plastic gold.

4 —GAMEINFORMER

M) dollars this year. Learn

TABLE OF CONTENTS

li COVER STORY l RED FACTION

TimeSplitters and Unreal Tournament have already given PS2 | fraggers two top notch first-person shooters to chew on. Now, | upstart development house Volition shows off what might be | the new standard in shooters with the amazing Red Faction. Behold the future.

FEATURE

GET THE GOODS: GI'S GUIDE TO GETTING WHAT YOU WANT THIS HOLIDAY SEASON

Santa Claus better run and hide, because Holiday Sam has returned to snatch back his crown as the king of December. Along the way, he reveals the time-honored secrets you'll need to con your parents into spending

from the master; just don't smell like him.

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Get distracted ana

will hurt you with her dominant beach game.

The 5 the the , Keep focused - your dreams of Sydney, Acapulco and Rio could be history. There's a lot of sand to cover. The sun's blinding.

You must play your game.

Rule the beach as Gabby Reece or more than 40 other FIVB pros

Feel the thrill of the FIVB World Tour

Keep Your Eye on the Ball

Use Incredible Moves Last-second Digs, Off-the-Net, huge Power Spikes and More

PRO BEBDHEVOTUEPBBIUD

RATING PENDING

Photo: Peggy Sirota

—>

CARAPACE Playstation

Ший; of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, Licensed hy Nintendo. Game Boy and Game Boy Color are trademarks of

Federation Intemationale de Volleyball. Mikasa and the Mikasa logo © 2000 Mikasa Sports USA. All Rights Reserv ШИЕ taken from the PlayStation game console,

Nintendo of America Inc. ©1989, 1998 Nintendo of Ame! The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interacti

EDITOR'S FORUM Return of the Madman. Gl editor in chief (and resident crank) Andy McNamara is back to his old self, spewing hate and spec- ulation.

DEAR GI Our readers weigh in on the new Game Informer, the Jet Grind Radio controversy, and funnyman Pauly Shore. Also, one read- er exposes the dark (and smelly) underside of the Seaman phenomenon.

GI SPY The Game Informer paparazzi stalk the video game industry, bringing you candid photos of all the action.

NEWS All the video game news that's fit to print, and some that's not. Get the scoop on Munch's Oddysee's move to Xbox, a new X-Men game for PS2, and a report from the Tokyo Game Show. Also, hot gossip in Loose Talk, and Transformers in R&D.

PREVIEWS If, like us, you've already beaten Tony Hawk 2 and are wondering what you're going to do with the rest of you life — fear not. We've got massive previews on hot upcoming PS2 titles like Gran Turismo 3 and Twisted Metal

6 GAME INFORMER

Black, plus the return of big blue in Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Shuffle.

REVIEWS As the battle for consumers’ holiday dollars heats up, publishers are readying a slew of blockbuster titles. This month we survey the madness, picking the winners and losers of this season. Features reviews for Final Fantasy IX, WWF SmackDown 2, TimeSplitters, and Shenmue.

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

P

PLAY TO PERFECTION GI workhorse Jay sacrificed another month of his life, and a good por- tion of his sanity, to bring you this complete walkthrough of Square's Final Fantasy IX.

SECRET ACCCESS

GI's legendary codebreakers unleash a fierce torrent of codes and tips, plus the world's only complete list of the locations of the new Pokémon in Silver & Gold. Also, lists of the timed event in both games.

CLASSIC GI

This month our classic feature takes a look back at the Waterworld of the Atari 2600, SwordQuest. Find out how this would-be epic ended up as one of the biggest flops of all time (Yu Suzuki, take note). Also fea- tures Mike Tyson's Punch Out and retro reviews of Skitchin',

Cybermorph, Cosmic Avenger, and

Kirby's Dream Course.

ETC This month we put our Game Boy Color online, make a crappy radio out of cardboard, lis- ten to Matt and Andy's new CD, and look on in amazement as Erik's vehic- ular woes continue.

153

GAME

4X4 Evolution 7 Blade 68 Army Men: Air Attack 2. . АШ ‘Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magic ш. Er Army Men World War: Land, Sea, Air

Batman Beyond: Retum of the Joker

Blair Witch Volume One: Rustin Parr

Blaster Master: Blasting Again

Breath of Fire IV

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Buzz Lightyear of Star Command

Call to Power ll .

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon .

Command and Conquer: Red Alert 2

Cool Boarders 2001 .

Cool Boarders: Code. "Меп.

РАСЕ # 126

Disney's The Emperor's New Groove Donald Duck: Goin’ Quackers . Dragon Warrior | & Il

Dragon's Lair ....

Emperor: Battle for Dune

Eternal Ey

Evil Dead: Hail to the King . F355 Challenge: Passione Rossa FIFA 2001 (PS-X)

FIFA 2001(PS2),

Final Fantasy IX

Frogger 2: Swampy's Revenge (DC) Frogger 2: Swampy's Revenge (GBC) . Goemon

Gradius IIl & IV .

Gran Turismo 3

Gunman Chronicles .

Heroes of Might and Magic Ill . International Track & Field .

Jet Grind Radio ..

Kengo: Master of Bushido . Kessen 2

Kirby's Dream Course

Knockout Kings 2

Little Mermaid Il: Pinball Frenzy . Looney Tunes Racing

M&M's Minis Madness

Mega Man 64

Metal Walker

Metropolis Street Racer . Midnight Club . .

Midtown Madness 2.

Mike Tyson Boxing

Moto GP

Motor Mayhem .

Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness . MTV Skateboarding feat Andy Macdonald NASCAR 2001(PS-X)

NASCAR 2001(PS2)

NBA Live 2001(PS-X)

NBA Live 2001(PS2)

NFL Gameday 2001 .

No One Lives Forever

Orphen: Scion of Sorcery Pokémon Puzzle League Pokémon Silver & Gold .

Project Justice .

Rainbow 6: Covert Ops Essentials . Rayman 2: Revolution

Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Rou

Twisted Metal Black .

Unreal Tournament

Warriors of Might and Magic WCW Backstage Assault (N64). WCW Backstage Assault (PS-X) . Wizards and Warriors.

World Destruction League . WWE No Mercy ..

WWF SmackDown 2

On a typical day the US Customs service seizes: * arms and ammunition worth over $24,000

* illegal substances worth over $4 million.

But nevertheless, in 1999 illegal substances with an estimated value of $40 billion entered

the country across the US/Mexican border alone...

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PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

RATING PENDING The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. Angel Studios and the Angel Studios logo are trademarks of Angel Studios. Guidance Recordings and the Guidance Recordings logo are 1 trademarks of Guidance Recordings Inc. Rockstar Games and the Rockstar Games logo are trademarks of he Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. © 1999 All rights reserved. Esk This title is not yet approved by Sony Computer Entertainment America.

NINTENDO

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EINFORM

DECEMBER 2000 Volume X • Number 12 • Issue 92

EDITORIAL

Editor Andrew McNamara Senior Associate Editors Paul Andersone Andrew Reiner Associate Editors Jay Fitzloff * Erik Reppen • Matt Helgeson • Kristian Brogger Copy Editors Gabrielle Dane • Sarah Anderson • Jon Storm Web Editors Justin Leeper * Matthew Kato Mascot Arthur

PRODUCTION

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

ADVERTISING

Vice President Advertising Richard A. Cihak * (952) 946-7256 National Advertising Sales Director Kimberley Thompson-Benike • (952) 946-8159 e Fax (952) 946-8155 10120 W. 76th Street * Eden Prairie, MN 55344-3728

CIRCULATION

Circulation Manager Vicky Valley * (952) 946-7274

Customer Service Department For change of address or subscription inquiry only: (952) 946-7266 Fax (952) 946-8155 or send correspondance to: 10120 W. 76th Street « Eden Prairie, MN 55344-3728 • Attn: CIS Dept

SUNRISE PUBLICATIONS, INC President John Woodson Publisher Cathy Preston

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, 10120 W. 76th Street, Eden Prairie, MN 55344. Unsolicited manuscripts cannot be returned or acknowledged, Entire contents copyright 2000. Game Informer® Magazine. All rights reserved; reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Game Informer is a trademark of FUNCO, 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 an 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.

4

Member Audit Bureau of Circulations

PlayStation.e

"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. ©2000 Take 2 Interactive. All rights reserved. Take 2 Interactive Software and the Take 2 logo are trademarks of Take 2 interactive Software.

© 2000 ASK / Shogakukan / SHO-PRO

All other trademarks and logos are properties of their respective owners.

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Master the techniques used by the pros!

The most beautiful pool halls in the world!

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EVERYONE

RETURN OF THE MADMAN

Well, the readers have spoken and overall | think the redesign was a suc- cess. Some people are pretty pissed about the loss of the three reviewers, but 1 am hoping they can get over it (well, they are gonna have to, because we aren't changing it back). About the only other big concern | had, was that people were somewhat mixed on the cover, thinking it looked too much like a PC mag, or that it was too white, but | can assure you the look will change depending on what art we have available to us at the time.

On other fronts, it seems Sony really screwed the pooch on the launch of PS2. Sure, every man and his dog wants one and will do anything and everything to get one, but I think this would have happened either way (even if Sony had been able to get all 1 million units out on launch day). But hey, I'm sure you'll be able to get your hands on one sometime in January. Sony is turning into the new Nintendo, willing to screw you over and over with delays and the like, leaving you sitting high and dry just having to take it if you want to play its games. Nintendo never learned, but maybe Sony will...unfortunately, | don't think it will be anytime soon.

| certainly would love to be a fly on the wall in the offices of Microsoft and Nintendo right about now, as you would have to imagine they are doing some serious brainstorming trying to figure out how to take down the Sony behemoth, or least assure a strong hold on second place.

4

Balloons І to г: Andy, Matt, Reiner, Kristian, Erik. Broadcasters: Jay & Paul.

10 GAMEINFORMER

Speaking of second place, what is up with our good old friend Dreamcast? | know you don't want to hear this, but the sad part about the ushering in of PS2 is that the Dreamcast may be its first causality. Which is really unfortunate, as | am really starting to love the DC - Sega is just so feisty, and it may be one of the best and innovative game developers out there.

Now I know you are saying to yourself that old Andy here is just down on the Dreamcast, but 1 challenge you to fight the facts. Dreamcast sales in Japan are horrible, and even here in the States you will be hard-pressed to find a third-party devel- oper with a game planned for the DC in the fall of 2001. While no one will fess up to this dirty little industry secret (as they know Sega will be quick to retaliate), | can't get anyone to challenge it. So Sega boys and girls out there, if you want Sega to make it through the tough year ahead, you better get out there and buy, buy, buy as much Sega product as you can. Sega is gonna need some support from consumers to make it past the Xbox and Gamecube launch.

Either way, | should get lots of interesting material for Letters From the Editor over the next year from this whole battle, and | will even make a prediction that if Sega can’t make it through the upcoming hardware wars, y we may just see our friends at Sega making games for another system.

Hmmm, | wonder which one that would be? Guess we'll have to talk about

that another month. Andy McNamara Editor

andy@gameinformer.com

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PAUL, THE GAME PROFESSOR paul@gameinformer.com

“| got an interesting email from Griffith, Indinana regarding my reviews of Madden and NFL 2K1. The author was quite disgusted at how | scored Madden higher than 2K1 and, because he was a former Indiana state champion, he knew his football. However, he forgot one thing: He didn’t play Madden. He rambled on and on, but I really only read the first couple sentences. Hey, | like nothing better than to debate the pro and cons of games, but | think that you should have the intelligence to play both of them before calling my reviews a ‘pile of crap.’”

REINER, THE RAGING GAMER reiner@gameinformer.com

Rather than tap into my raging persona to make fun of my coworkers (Paul is a mental poophead!), | want to add closure to the rumor that the Gl staff is getting canned. We were on the chopping block, but thankfully, the powers that be never made it to the Gl office to hand out the pink slips. It turns out that their flight to Minneapolis was actually rerouted to Iraq in a plane with ‘Saddam can suck it!’ spray painted on the wings. So, if our new bosses ever return, which I highly doubt, we may face extinction. Until then, the same staff, and our first female writer, Kristian, will continue to churn out the goods."

MATT, THE ORIGINAL GAMER matt@gameinformer.com

“The stress of this so-called ‘New and Improved Game Informer’ has crushed my feeble mind. | can barely string together a coherent sentence anymore. The best | can do is spew inane non-sequiters and profanity. Hey, maybe this might qualify me for being the lead singer of Limp Bizkit! Here's my audition- ‘Yo, getcha groove on! | hate my parents, | hate @#$ carrots - getcha groove on- MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY, don't ever @#$ with me, Your elbow's writing checks that ya pancreas can't cash! Who gets the blame? I'm @#$ lame! DON'T @#$ing @#$ wit’ me skidmark! Yo, it's kinda dark — getcha GROOVE on! Don't pee-pee on my windowpane!”

ERIK, THE PC JEDI

erik@gameinformer.com

“Argh! All| can think about is Red Alert 2. | don't have time for this silly blurb! For the first time since Doom, I’ve developed a serious urge to get out there and kick total strangers’ butts. Nothing is quite so entertaining as flattening an enemy base with Кігоуѕ and then dropping a nuke on their fleeing troops for a humiliating coup de grace. There’s nothin’ like the smell of exploding cows in the morning. A lot of you ingrates out there have been sending me challenges to take you on in online games. Fine. Just don’t cry when the PC Jediski crushes you.”

JAY, THE GONZO GAMER jay@gameinformer.com

“I've been spending a lot of time out in Las Vegas lately working on a top secret project for Game Informer. The fruits of my labor will be appear in next month's issue, but I'd like to tell you all about a weird thing that keeps happening to me out there. When І go out on the town in Vegas, the ladies are all over me. That's not the strange thing, though. That's just another day in the life for yours truly. What | can't figure out is why all the girls | meet live in big houses on the outskirts of town. And why do | wake up missing around $150, with the girl nowhere to be found? It's very perplexing. Has this ever happened to any of you?”

KRISTIAN, THE GAME DAWG kristian@gameinformer.com

“Good issue to you, my droogs and only friends. |, Kristian, your humble narrator, have been busy with all manner of crazy and scandalous things these past weeks. I’m slightly ill at ease as it seems Reiner has finally arrived at a mental break. He has been chasing me around the office in his favorite pink tutu, ranting and raving that | must be a girl because my name begins with a К. At first, | was able to fend him off with a bit of the old ultra-violence, but now it seems his tactics have shifted, for | woke up last night to him grinning at me ghoulishly through my bedroom window. Pray for my safety, brothers and sisters, that | may live to write again!”

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PlayStation and the "PS" Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony TEEN Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the

2 led Interactive Digital Software Association. Angel Studios and the Angel Studios ® pos | О» logo are trademarks of Angel Studios. Rockstar Games and the Rockstar a= > т «. =

Games logo are trademarks of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. counterbalance we jl © 2000 All rights reserved. Eppo чш»

THE NEW GAME INFORMER

So there | am going through my mail as usual, right? And I come across a maga- zine that had familiar letters at the top of it, but it didn't look right. Then | realized what it was. And THEN I real- ized | needed to put some new pants on. |

EXCLUSIVE NINTENDO GAMECUBE COVERAGE!

Ted ad pae in Gm

BUT IS IT EVERYTHÍ SONY PROMISED? Р$2 REPORT CARD.

must say - | had already thought of Game Informer as the #1 video дате mag out there, but now there is no question in my mind. You usually can't improve on perfection, but miracles do happen. | am pleased that nothing was dropped from the previous version of the mag and many things were added. Everything has been improved upon. And | actually found myself laughing...numerous times, really. | guarantee that all your hard work will pay off...in dividends. You guys rule. Everyone else just sucks. Nate "Fathead" Lechner Park Ridge, IL

Thanks, Nate. We've received a tremendous amount of positive feedback on our new look from our readers. We will continue to work to make Game Informer the biggest, baddest video game magazine on the block, and hope that all our readers will be along for the ride. As for your pants, we recommend soaking them in club soda and then washing them in cold water to remove any poopy stains. Erik swears by this technique, and he should know.

A STINKY SITUATION Recently, I've been hearing rumors about Sega's Seaman, more specifically the microphone that comes with the game. I've heard reports from numerous people and different websites that peo- ple have been renting Seaman with the microphone and before returning the game have been wiping their private parts with the tip of the microphone, and in some cases sticking it into places it definitely wasn’t intended for. Now whether or not this is true still remains to be seen, but it might be a good idea to warn your readers about renting Seaman. Just trying to keep America from talking into fecal matter. Steve “I warned ya” Kotecki Anytown, NY

Thank you, Steve, for alerting us to this potentially dangerous situation. We urge our readers, at least those of you who are concerned with personal hygiene, to exer- cise caution when playing a rented copy of Seaman. We suggest dousing the microphone with an anti-bacterial spray, and wearing a dental dam and latex gloves while playing. Remember, when it comes to video games, your safety...hey...[sniff, sniff]...this letter smells kind of

12 GAME INFORMER

funny...[sniff, sniff]...wait a second...[sniff]....OH MY GOD....you !@#$!@#$!@! ....real funny, Steve!....WE'LL GET YOU FOR THIS!...yuck!! If you'll excuse us, we have to go wash our hands.

JET GRIND RADIO STATIC

When | first heard about Jet Grind Radio, | thought: “Finally, they're starting to make aggro inline games!” However, only a few hours later, my mom pointed out to me an interesting article in a local newspaper. The article stated that the aldermen of my city are moving to try to ban this game here in Milwaukee!

They said the game “glorifies graffiti’ and “teaches kids to hate the cops,” making “taggers look like the good guys.” My first reaction was, “What a bunch of bull$#!U!!” We finally get a decent inline game, and now some damn politicians want to ban it! | mean, they've released way worse games in the past without much of a fuss. | mean, c'mon! The game even contains a disclaimer about vandal- ism! Luckily, Milwaukee is the only city so far to try to ban this game. Nevertheless, | will not let this take place, and | know there are probably lots more gamers who will stand behind me. Gamers of Milwaukee and the world unite! We can make just as much noise about this as some skater- hater politicians can! Video game graffiti is not a crime!! We have a right to play good games!!!

A furious Milwaukee gamer, David Nelson Milwaukee, WI

We sympathize, David. It seems like 2000 is the year that politicians everywhere are attempting to use video games and the entertainment industry as the scapegoat for any number of societal problems. However, the main problem you have is that you live in Wisconsin. Trust us - get out of Milwaukee as soon as you can, and never look back. Have you seen American Movie? Don't you

see all those unemployed alcoholic ; mongoloids you live amongst? Move to Rhode Island, move to Iran – just move! | You'll thank us later in life.

FEAR OR LAZINESS?

What's up with recent shooter games \ like Resident Evil: Survivor and Silent Scope not being compatible with the light gun? Are game companies backing away from the realistic touch that makes those kinds of games so fun because of government pressure, or are they just being lazy?

John Dettinger

York, PA

Fear, mostly. We can't speak for all companies, but in the cases of RE: Survivor and Silent Scope, we know that Capcom and Konami, respectively, were motivated by concerns about video game violence. In Capcom's case, it even went so far as to take the word "gun" out of the title (the game was Biohazard Gun Survivor in Japan). That said, we think the game sucks with or without a gun controller. As for Silent Scope, the developers actually managed to do a good job of overcoming the loss of a gun controller, so you might want to check it out anyway.

WEASEL FAN CRIES FOUL Excuuuuuuuuuse me, but how DARE you make fun of Pauly Shore in your newest issue? [see Good, Bad, Ugly October '00] You say he's got a [expletive deleted] voice but | think it is DEAD SEXY. Why must you be cruel [exple- tive deleted]? Reiner, | thought you were hot. Some Babe Via excite.com

Whoa...let's watch the language, young lady. We did- n't mean to slight your beloved Weasel. We haven't for- gotten his brilliant pop hit Lisa, Lisa (The One | Adore), or his cinematic masterpiece Son in Law. We were mak- ing fun of Andy, not Pauly. Just because you don't agree with our viewpoints, there's no reason to write in such gutter talk to a respectable family publication. If you think Reiner is hot, that's because he is. We're lucky enough to see him prance around the office every day in a zebra-striped Zubaz bikini and high heels. Work that sweet patootie, you Raging hottie!

ROCK THE VOTE! Dear future President Paul Anderson, | read the GI feature article and think your ideas and plans totally kick ass! | cut out the free campaign button and will use it when the time is right. As it said in the article, | am sending a donation to the campaign. | was too cheap to put in a real dollar, so | spent a half hour making this one on the ol' PC. You can hang it in your campaign headquarters or any place you wish as a reminder that you have at least one supporter. In addition to my dollar, you have received a free quarter. Yes, you read right, 25 cents, if this highly valuable coin is not stolen in the mail. Michael Guerra Stewart Manor, NY

Thanks, Michael. The overwhelming response to Paul's campaign has resulted in a massive groundswell of support for his candidacy. Thanks to our readers, Paul is now running at almost .0000789% in recent polls

(which actually puts him slightly ahead of Pat Buchanan). Since you were nice enough to send two copies of this letter, along with two quarters, Matt (Director of Operations, Anderson 2000) was able to buy himself an ice-cold Dr. Pepper. It was very refreshing.

| have sent you several emails in the past, but you haven't responded to any of them. Maybe it's because 1 don't suck up to you like Jeff Jarrett did to Vince Russo. Anyway, | have some questions. Answer them, or you will be cursed for EEEEVVVVEEEERRRR!!!

1. | once heard of a portable system called the Sega Nomad. In one of your older issues, you said that it was a six-button system and it could play Genesis games. How many bits did it have, and how many games? Could it play Game Gear games or Sega Master System games? And how can Sega’s games be so bad that a six-button color system is driven out of the market by a black-and-white, two-button 8-bit system (Game Boy)?!

2. Where do you come up with your nicknames? Except for the PC Jedi, everyone is “(Name), the (some adjective) Gamer", or “(Name), the Game (some really stupid noun).” COME ОМІ!!!

Jacob Rudolph West Chester, PA

All right, Jake, we'll ignore your petty threats and answer your questions. Apparently, we've already been cursed to a life of answering ridiculous letters, so we seriously doubt that your silly little hex could make mat- ters much worse.

1. The Sega Nomad, released in October 1995 in the US, was basically a handheld version of the Genesis. It featured a 3.25 full-color backlit LCD screen, a d-pad, and six buttons. It was compatible with the entire library of Genesis games, but not Game Gear, Sega Master System, 32X, or Sega CD titles. The system ran on a 16-bit processor, a derivation of the Genesis hard- ware, and used 6 AA batteries. The system failed for a number of reasons, most notably short battery life (only 2 hours), and lack of consumer confidence in Sega after the failure of the 32X and Sega CD. Also, Sega released the Saturn that very same year, which meant the Nomad was never marketed properly.

2. In light of your criticisms, we took it upon our- selves to come up with some more creative nicknames. From now on the GI staff will be known as: Matt the Mellifluous Madrigal, Erik the Esoteric Eggplant, Paul the Persian Pollywog, Jay the Gelatinous Jockstrap, Andy the Angry Areola, Kristian the Comatose Ketchup- Head, and Reiner the Rotten Rotary Phone.

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ENVELOPE A

DECEMBER WINNER!

Jason Horvath “What did | tell you about using the last roll of toilet paper without a tree in sight? You stupid fool!"

DAS Ario Elami This is Mario's poster for his pro- motional campaign for S.S.B. — Stop Supporting Bowser — an anti- large turtle group.

Mark Neil Unlike many black mages out there, Vivi has the unique ability to conjure fake vomit at will from his hand. A great trick at parties.

Nikki Edwards Roses are red. Voilets are blue. Come near me, and l kill you.

Josh Gilbert We are trying to stop Josh from getting in the magazine every month, but the guy

keeps sending us cool stuff.

Enter the Game Informer Envelope Art Contest. All you need to do is draw, paint, scratch, spit, or carve the best darn envelope art you can think of and send it to us. Please include your name, phone number, and return address on the back of the envelope. If you're the monthly winner, we'll feature your work in GI and you'll receive a video game prize from the Game Informer

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GAMEINFORMER 13

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+ САНЫЙ PHOTOS FROM THE I SEAMY UNDERBELLY OF THE “t VIDEO GAME INDUSTRY

(1) Kristian looks on as comic artists Dan Veesenmeyer (Video Game Deathmatch, Wizards of the Coast’s Star Wars RPG), and Adam Hughes (Wonder Woman, Ghost) spend an afternoon down- loading naked pictures of Danni Ashe at the Game Informer offices (2) After smacking the taste out of Matt’s mouth at the Codemasters’ Mike Tyson f event, video game historian Steven Kent asks, gg “Who's your daddy?" (3) Andy begins to regret his a decision to meet his EverQuest girlfriend in real life (4) Jen Stover shows off the costume that won ^ the Aya lookalike contest at Square’s Parasite Eve | 3# 2 launch party (5) Jeff “Club MTV” Casteñeda of `’. Rockstar Games and Rob “Pickle King” Fleischer of ' Linn PR demonstrate the bizarre initiation ritual required to join their motorized scooter gang (6) Game Informer: The Next Generation? Elsa Anderson (daughter of the Game Professor) pledges her allegiance to Nintendo, and spends some time hanging out with Kirby. (77) At the Tokyo Game Show, style maven Paul declares, “Orange vinyl is a fashion must this winter!” (8) Yochi Erikawa (aka Kou Shibusawa), founder of Koei and producer of Kessen, poses for a photo with his prom date, Paul Anderson. It takes a real man to get away with wearing a silver tie and electric blue shirt!

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GAME INFORMER 15

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+ CESA PRESENT [OKYOGAME 5! 2000AUTUMN

THE SIGHTS OF TOKYO GAME SHOW

The semi-annual Tokyo Game Show drew over 160,000 gamers over its three days in late September. Making the trek to Chiba City on the outskirts of Tokyo, Game Informer soaked it all in of the sights.

Although the crowds were big and there was strong showing of product from the likes of Konami, Capcom, Koei, and Sony, this session of the TGS was largely void of excitement due to the absence of two large game companies - Sega and Square. Likewise, Nintendo's only participation in the event is through its sponsorship and the company, historically, does not have a booth set up to show its wares.

Most of the noteworthy games we had a This PS2 controller from chance to see at the Tokyo Game Show are *.; A T Konami is made specifically

featured in this month's preview section. - for use with Dance Dance Revolution, Konami's popular dancing simulator. Instead of jumping around on a footpad, this confusingly lets you use your fingers. What's the point?

The USB connection on the PS2 will be put to use with new digital cameras that have been introduced. The devices will work in conjunc- tion with compatible games to allow players to import their likenesses into the action. There is also the possibility that the controller camera could be used in future network games to show each player the opponent on the other end.

Talk about playing in style! Sony had a number of stations play- ing Gran Turismo 3, including these deluxe set-ups complete with a racing seat, side-mounted speakers, and a force-feedback steering wheel made by Logitech.

16 GAMEINFORMER

Bandai displayed it upcoming handheld, the WonderSwan Color. Due to hit Japan in December, this machine will also hook into the PS2 via a USB cable. It was also revealed that WonderSwan games could be downloaded to a Sony MagicGate Memory Stick.

Dressing up as your favorite video game charac- ter, known as "cos-play," is really an event within itself at the TGS. Prizes are awarded for the best dressed. Outside the event hall, eager photographers form lines to snap pictures of their favorite cos-play participants. Some of these amateur shutterbugs carry equipment that would put a professional photographer to shame.

GAMEINFORMER 17

Race with what's under the hood.

Win with what's strapped on top.

PlayStation ‘CONTENT RATED BY lo ESRB

© 2000 Mattel, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

tadomarks of Sony Comper Болаттар nc. Customize your wheels Transform through portals Blast your way through for maximum firepower. to battle by land, with all the hard-core sea and air. weapons you find.

Take it to the Extreme! Modify then race one of eight customizable cars through some of the toughest tracks! Transform your vehicle to handle the terrain. But to win, you need fire power. Pick up machine guns and missile launchers to knock your opponents out! Because in this game, the best way to win is to make sure the other guys don't finish at all!