The fifth entry in Sega’s advanced, realistic fighting game series. Once again, the realtime level of visual detail and character animation has been upped to the most advanced levels, with next-generation lighting and detail on the fighters and environments.

Virtua Fighter 5 is the latest game in Sega’s Virtua Fighter series. It was released on July 12, 2006 into Japanese arcades. Virtua Fighter 5 is due for release on PlayStation 3 on February 20, 2007, and will be a launch title for the European release in March. The Xbox 360 version is due in the summer of 2007 (sooner than August), as confirmed by Sega on December 21, 2006. It’s mean that PS3 fans will stil be able to thumb their noses at the 360-only crowd for a good six months.

Virtua Fighter 5 features beautifully detailed stages from around the world where players face off in fast-moving martial arts battles against one of 17 characters. Two lively new characters join the elite group of fighters, adding two new unique fighting styles for players to try and master. With more skill and strategy than ever before, players are also given the opportunity to learn and employ the new “Offensive Move” technique to take down their opponents from different angles, adding a new dimension to the game and something for both new and old fans to master. Virtua Fighter 5 also includes the ability to customise characters by selecting from four base costumes and a wide range of unlockable accessories and earnable items. As players win more tournaments they will not only earn costumes and accessories, but also prizes and in-game money that will allow them to buy items from the in-game shop.

Playable characters

Akira Yuki : Akira strives for perfection and will drive himself relentlessly to master his techniques. He seeks worthy opponents to fight in order to find flaws in his skills to further attain mastery. Akira is the Assistant teacher of his father’s dojo. This dojo is his stage in Virtua Fighter 4.

Pai Chan : She is a martial arts action movie star in her hometown, and her fighting style is Ensei-Ken.

Lau Chan : In Virtua Fighter 4, Lau entered the tournament looking for a successor. He didn’t consider his daughter Pai, because he didn’t think she was strong enough to continue his legacy.

Jacky Bryant : Jacky fights using the incredibly versatile Jeet Kune Do style, allowing him a wide range of kicks and punches. The most important aspect of Jacky’s game is his combos, which can be utilized to repeatedly strike and inflict massive damage. He also seems to have a brash and confident attitude.

Sarah Bryant : Sarah is the sister of Jacky Bryant, and an avid practitioner of Jeet Kune Do. Sometime in her dealings with J6 corporation, she lost her memory. She enters the 3rd tournament to find and defeat her brother.

Jeffry McWild : Jeffry is an Australian that practices Pancratium, as well as having an intense liking for the sport of fishing. His bigest ambition is to catch the infamous “Satan Shark”.

Shun Di : Drinking during a fight will increase Shun Di’s fighting ability by making new and more powerful combos available.

Lion Rafale : The Rafale family is a very prominent family in France, who were known first for their lucrative success in the aircraft industry.

Kage-Maru : Kage took part in the 3rd tournament to defeat Dural and obtain new parts to help save his mother. Sadly, his mother’s condition worsened and she became Dural completely. On infiltrating the organization he found a new Dural which contained the secret to saving his mother.

Wolf Hawkfield : His VF5 story is currently unknown. However, it has been revealed that lucha libre wrestler El Blaze has some sort of connection with him.

Aoi Umenokouji : Aoi’s mastery of countering and defensive holds is clearly shown in Virtua Fighter 4, being the character with the most available in the entire game.

Lei-Fei : Lei is a monk who practices Shaolin kung-fu. He is part of an elite group of monks meant to get rid of martial art styles deemed too dangerous. Secretly he wishes to be trained by Lau Chan, the man he was sent to kill in the fourth tournament, in his unique style, Koen-Ken.

Vanessa Lewis : As an orphan, Vanessa was adopted by a special forces officer named Lewis, but Lewis died during a terrorist attack.

Brad Burns : In the kickboxing world, a new style is being created. Because of his good looks,Brad Burns has many female fans. What’s more, he likes to go out with such girls at night after his battles and present a charming personality.

Goh Hinogami : His father was a judo expert chosen to go to the Olympics, but, a jealous friend whose career aspirations were unsuccessful murdered him, and Goh became an orphan. Soon after, the Organization found him, and trained him in assassination arts.

Dural : Dural was previously a human woman. Her name was Tsukikage and she was both Kage-Maru’s mother and a Kunoichi.

New Comers : Two new characters were shown at the end of the Virtua Fighter 5 preview, immediately after the logo. The first character was a young girl who uses Monkey Kung Fu named Eileen. The second character that was shown along with the girl has been confirmed as El Blaze. He is a lucha libre wrestler and wears a mask. Blaze is a quicker fighter who uses acrobatic and gymnastic moves to fight and throw opponents; he seems to have some sort of rivalry with the existing character Wolf Hawkfield.

Feature

Players will be able to customize their characters by selecting from four uniquely patterned costumes and a wide range of attachable items that can be placed onto each fighter’s various body parts. Players will not only achieve victory by defeating highly-skilled opponents, but will also compete for prizes and earn in-game money through the match to buy many items at an in-game shop.

One thing that’s interesting is that the PS3 is undoubtedly going to be big in Japan, but in North America and Europe the Xbox 360 has a pretty sizeable head start, not to mention an installed-base advantage. Have you considered the financial benefits to bringing the game to the system (the 360) with the bigger installed-base in North America? I’ve heard that Lindbergh is closer in design to 360 due to the PC-style architecture of the systems. I don’t know if this is true or not, but I’m interested in knowing your opinion on this.

Developher : Sega
Publisher : Sega
Genre : Fighting
Platform : Arcade, PS3, Xbox360
ESRB : Teen
Release date :

Arcade
JPN July 12, 2006

PlayStation 3
JPN February 8, 2007
NA February 20, 2007
EUR March, 2007

Xbox 360
NA August, 2007
EUR August, 2007

On another note, this game was nicknamed “Goddess of War” by various game critics at E3 due to its similarities to the game “God of War“.

Graphics

Heavenly Sword employs state-of-the-art technology and gameplay to take players through a roller coaster of emotion and action that truly exploits the potential of gaming as the new artistic entertainment medium.”

Emotionally charged, stunningly beautiful and delivering unprecedented dramatic character performance, Heavenly Sword showcases the power of PLAYSTATION 3. A dramatic tale of revenge sees Nariko.

Andy Serkis, the world’s leading CG actor, famous for his roles as Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings” and Kong in “King Kong”, was heavily involved in the creative process. As well as starring in Heavenly Sword as the villain, King Botan, Andy was a major contributor to the character development, writing, casting, directing and performance capture for the PLAYSTATION 3 game.

Storyline

The story builds around the ancient Heavenly Sword which once belonged to a powerful deity. It can never be wielded by a mortal without it draining their life-force, killing them within hours.

A girl named Nariko with a fiery red-haired heroine, who only have a few days left to live who embarks on one final act of redemption against a king and his invading army.

Gameplay

The gameplay of Heavenly Sword seems to resemble a martial arts game focusing on both melee and ranged weapons. The main character has one weapon that can transform into various weapons. Revealed so far are a chainlike weapon, 2 separate swords, and one big sword. Wide Range of Objects and Weaponry – Including multi-skewering spears and devastatingly explosive bazookas.

The Heavenly Sword itself can Transform into Three Distinct Stances – Players can switch between on the fly allowing players to create their own fighting styles.

The Combat Engine can Scale Up – From sophisticated one-on-one encounters to one-on-many, where enemies employ intelligent squad-based dynamics, right up to combat against battalions pushing real-time gameplay and AI to unprecedented new levels.

Physics-based Combat – Players can sweep debris against opponents, kick tables to halt an oncoming surge of fighters, smash the enemy into the scenery or throw bodies into other enemies using aftertouch controls.

The game will have reaction commands; wherein the symbol for a certain button will appear on screen, and when pushed the game will enter a controllable-cutscene where the player must push the different combination of buttons on the screen. From the demo seen, it appears to have a rotational camera angle. While using a throwing attack on an enemy, players can rotate the PS3 SIXAXIS controller to different angles: making the camera point in the direction the user wishes, though the angles will be static when entering a Q.T.E. Another notable element is that it will be possible to pick up and throw objects in the environment; the player can use the main character to pick up and throw enemies with her chain. In the demo Nariko picked up a small shield and threw it, at which point the game went into first person. From this, it appears that the player will have some control over the object in that mode.

Developer: Ninja Theory
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Genre: Action/adventure
Rating ESRB: Rating Pending (RP)
Platform: PlayStation 3
Release date: March 6, 2007 (US), March 15, 2007 (AU), December 2007 (EU)

Devil May Cry 4 has quickly become one of the most anticipated titles for the PlayStation 3. After recovering from the revelation that a new character named Nero is replacing fan-favorite hero Dante in the starring role, gamers began speculating about what other new directions the beloved action series may take. Unfortunately, those answers aren’t coming quite yet. But from what we’ve seen of the game thus far, it is clear that “Devil May Cry 4″ will carry on the traditions of it predecessors.

A teaser trailer was shown at E³ 2005, depicting Dante traveling through snow, and then quickly performing some fast, stylish moves. The second trailer was shown at the Tokyo Game Show 2005 where it showed a more rugged and older Dante in a city-like setting performing more stylish moves at the camera while using more of the PlayStation 3’s graphical power. While both were just teasers, showing very little detail of the game itself, the Tokyo Game Show 2006 trailer, shown on September 20, 2006, displayed a more accurate reflection of what is expected to be present with the release of the final product. On September 22, 2006, the Tokyo Game Show trailer was posted on the official Devil May Cry 4 website. Until then, only off-screen, low quality versions of the trailer were available.

Devil May Cry 4 Rumours
In no particular order, here’s a compiled list of some of the more frequent rumours and gossip that have been circling around various gaming message boards:

1. Dante will return with a much more serious and darker attitude, similar to Devil May Cry2.
2. Nelo Angelo with be making an appearance.
3. Devil May Cry 4’s timeline will be set directly after the events of Devil May Cry 2.
4. There is talk of a second playable character being introduced (possibly Trish), complete with his/her own story and skills.
5. Most of the team behind Devil May Cry 2 and 3 will be developing Devil May Cry 4, along with Hiroyuki Kobayashi returning to lend a hand (co-producer behind the original Devil May Cry).

The main character.(possible to be Vergil,because when he loose the fight against mundus and appears as Nelo Angero, “Nero Angelo” meaning “Black Angel” in Italian. When he loose against Dante (dmc1) he desappear, and may be reappear as a Dante´s Original Clone but with his demon trigger exposed.The sword has to much appeareance to Nero angelo´s sword)) He is part of the Kyodan Kishi (Order of Knights) and has psychokinetic powers (described by a developer as the “Devil Bringer”) which are just awakening in the game. While Nero does resemble Dante greatly, his attire consists of blue jeans, a long blue coat, and a red vest (the TGS trailer shows Nero in a red coat like Dante’s). He also wields a revolver, named Blue Rose, (which has a distinctive under-and-over double barrel, and somewhat resembles the Demon Gun revolver that Dan Smith acquires in the Capcom game Killer 7) as opposed to pistols, and he wields a slightly more decorated, single-edged sword called the Red Queen. Nero’s right arm also seems to resemble a demon’s and glows supernaturally, and this is where his Devil Bringer power comes from. He apparently was not born with his arm like that, as evidenced by a quote used in the trailers, and on the game’s official Web site, “From that day forth … my arm changed … and a voice echoed … ‘Power … Give me more power!’” Dante’s brother Vergil was also obsessed with acquiring more power during the events of “Devil May Cry 3″. Nero hates Dante, as he killed the leader of the Order.

Devil May Cry 4 will feature more weapons, maneuvers, enemies, locations, music, and cutscenes than all the previous releases combined. DMC4 also looks to continue the series’ tradition of huge bosses, as the demo features a battle between Nero and a gigantic fire demon called Variel. The game is billed as being the longest release yet.

Also joining the cast is a new female character, Kyrie, who will seemingly serve as a love interest for Nero.

However, Nero will not be the only playable character. The Japanese magazine Famitsu Capcom Vol. 2 revealed that Dante will be playable, that he would be older in this release, and be sporting a more rugged look, indicating that the continuity likely occurs chronologically after Devil May Cry. On the official website, Dante is shown in screenshots swinging his sword and firing his twin pistols. He looks slightly older, and has stubble, in contrast to Nero who looks boyish. However, the official Web site had renders of Dante and Vergil as portrayed in Devil May Cry 3 on the main page when it first launched, implying the character Vergil may be involved in the story. Also, Dante asks for something back from Nero in the trailer, only to receive a boot in the face from Nero. One possibility is that Dante is after his keepsake amulet — which served as a MacGuffin in the third game — as he is not seen wearing it in the trailer.

Itsuno also shared some details on how the game is tapping the power of the PS3. He has said that the visuals attempt to deliver a satisfying feel of being in the air, and that Nero’s right arm actions are something that could not be done on current machines and only on the PS3. Gameplay visuals, shown at TGS 2006, demonstrate this game mechanic in action.

Given that the series has focused on Dante and Vergil up to this point, it is strange that the significance of the two brothers in “DMC 4″ is still up in the air. Thankfully, we don’t need to know exactly how Sparda’s offspring figure in to predict that “Devil May Cry” will provide its trademark mix of stylish flair and overblown action when it finally hits.

Developer : Capcom
Publisher : Capcom
Genre : Action/Adventure
Platform : PS3
Release date : 2nd Semester 2007

Ever wonder why Microsoft hasn’t released an HDMI cable for the Xbox 360, or whether the AV port was really capable of digital out? Well, here’s your answer: engadget landed pictures of what appears to be the second Xbox 360 — the Xbox 360 v2, if you will — codenamed Zephyr. (The original Xbox 360, if you recall, was codenamed Xenon.)

According to Engadget, Microsoft has been busying itself with a new version of the Xbox 360. The team has snapped some sneaky pics of the new console that was previously only thought to boast a die shrink for its Xenos GPU and tri-cored IBM CPU. This provides lower power, less heat and hopefully a better console life-span.

It appears that Microsoft has decided it needs to keep up with the Jones’ (Sony) and integrate a HDMI port as well as the standard analogue A/V port. Not pictured is the all new, larger 120GB hard disk (twice that of Sony’s 60GB PS3) that may or may not come with the package. This means users can use the Live Marketplace to download a lot more stuff without having to resort to deleting things left, right and centre – a problem made all the more worse since Microsoft has starts its movie, TV and music download services.

The question is, despite the new console features, will it require people buying a Zephyr to have a HDMI/HDCP enabled TV to watch HD-DVD and High-Definition content? Up until now, thanks to the recent Xbox Live update, Microsoft has enabled people to use the analogue component and VGA connections to watch their movies in HD, essentially DRM-free. Could this mean more people seek out the version 1 console in DRM-free preference?

There’s no word yet on whether or not the new HDD will come inside the new bundle, but its regardless a welcomed change for Xbox enthusiasts. One much needed upgrade that has no word of actually coming to light is an internal HD-DVD drive. It’d make the package a lot cleaner, but appears to have missed the boat on this revision.

Will this make the version 1 consoles cheaper since it offers fewer options? Despite the fact the new console should be cheaper to make on a 65nm, including HDMI means Microsoft has to pay royalties on every console sold. Add into the fact it will need a separate firmware to the version 1 consoles and you’ve increased the work, and cost, on your development team.

The 65nm process is said to be delayed for several months, so it may be until 2nd or 3rd quarter before we can get a hold of it. That wait might mean Sony will get a better foothold on this market before Zephyr sees the sales floor…providing, of course, that the PS3 can get some games out worth playing.

Prices are expected to remain the same on the console to keep the competition with Sony and Nintendo stiff, and these changes are expected to hit the shelves soon. No official word has been released yet, however.

Metal Gear Solid 4 is officially titled Guns of the Patriots. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (commonly abbreviated to MGS4) is a stealth-based game directed by Hideo Kojima and Shuyo Murata. Guns of the Patriots is currently being developed by Kojima Productions for the PlayStation 3 video game console. The game uses the motto “no place to hide” with the theme of “senses”.

Story

The player once again takes on the form of Solid Snake and undertakes new missions, entering new chaotic situation. Buildings lie burnt and shattered. Streets are twisted and mangled. Some war ruined this place. Some war ruins it still.

Set in the year 2015, six years after the Manhattan incident (the events of Metal Gear Solid 2), MGS4 portrays a world where the restriction of military intervention on foreign soil has eased, leading to demands on mercenaries to fight proxy battles for business purposes, fueling the need for private military contractors (PMCs) and automated weapons.

However, the five largest PMCs are revealed to be owned by a single mother company, Outer Heaven (the name of Big Boss’ mercenary company and fortified nation in the original Metal Gear), operated by Liquid Ocelot. It is revealed that Outer Heaven has amassed a military equivalent in manpower to the United States’ own, and is now preparing to launch an armed insurrection. With the world once again in crisis, Solid Snake is deployed to the Middle East.

Graphic

That, however, is reality from an external perspective and does not necessarily take into account the inner aspect. In the past, buildings in games were similar to those found on movie or stage sets and were merely pictures or photographs of wall-material pasted on the surface of a polygon model.

That, however, is reality from an external perspective and does not necessarily take into account the inner aspect. In the past, buildings in games were similar to those found on movie or stage sets and were merely pictures or photographs of wall-material pasted on the surface of a polygon model. The characters created on infinitesimally thin boards were also devoid of any signs of inner flesh, blood, or heThe inner aspect is unseen and establishes its presence only through time and the will of the player. This will pave the way toward a revolutionary change that will lead us away from the past concept based on “reality” towards the “natural.”

Gameplay

Kojima has stated the main new concept for Metal Gear Solid 4 will be “No Place To Hide!”, but has also assured fans that this theme does not imply that the trademark stealth gameplay has been removed. However, Kojima has stated in Weekly Famitsu magazine that the game is no longer based around predetermined “sneaking missions”, permitting the player to choose the best method in order to traverse the environment and carry out their objectives, be it combatively or stealthily.

The defensive and stealth maneuvers Snake has at his disposal in MGS 4 also smoothly transition into offensive moves. While face-down on the ground, his chameleon ability is triggered, as shown when he takes on a shadowy hue in an alley, allowing two soldiers to pass him by. Just as they march past, he flips over onto his back, and with pistol right up against his belly, takes out both soldiers from behind. Snake also made use of a new shooting perspective reminiscent of that in Resident Evil 4, with rifle butt against his shoulder, and the camera view hovering above his shoulder. He was dressed as a local soldier with a cloak low over his head here, so we can presume he’ll don different outfits as befits the situation.

Sense

Kojima has stated that with the PlayStation 3, he will be able to focus on the things we can’t see, and to explore the senses that video games rarely tap into. For example, if a building is severely damaged, the resulting sound from a nearby explosion could cause the building to crumble and fall. Furthermore, he is planning to consult psychiatrists on how to emphasize a “mental battle” between Snake and his enemies, so that “who controls the fear can decide the outcome”. The game’s trailer hints that the tactical Metal Gears featured in the game are designed to play with Snake’s emotions: one unit paws the ground and growls like a bull while hunting for Snake, while another makes cicada noises to create a false sense of security.

Continuing with this theme, the soldiers Snake will encounter are not specifically friends or enemies at first – rather, the player’s actions towards them will influence how they respond to Snake. In an interview in Edge, Kojima stated that he plans to allow players to have a greater effect on the enemy than just fighting them, allowing alliances and aggressions to form and change between Snake and the other parties on the battlefield.

Returning elements

The game is planned to utilize a new 360-degree third-person camera system in addition to the top-down camera used in the previous three Metal Gear Solid games. An experimental version of this camera system is included in Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence. The altered third-person camera also allows for a more precise first-person aiming system. The CQC system will also be reprised, allowing players to interrogate guards for information and supplies as before. Another feature that debuted in Subsistence, an online battle mode, will also be featured in Metal Gear Solid 4.

In a first for the series, the graphics will emphasize natural movement in actions such as an enemy’s discovery of Snake, thus eliminating the need of exclamation marks or question marks as indicators. However, recent interviews suggest that they may be reinstated for nostalgic reasons.

Although no Metal Gear models have been revealed as of yet, a similar concept mecha called GEKKO makes a prominent appearance. Kojima has described the machine as being equivalent to a jeep, whereas a traditional Metal Gear, with its greater lethality, would be a tank in comparison.

Developer : Kojima Production
Publisher : Konami
Genre : Espionage, Stealth
Platform : PS3
ESRB : RP (Rating Pending)
Release Date : TBA 2007

Silent Hill Origins tells the tale of a solitary truck driver stuck in the terrifying town while making a routine delivery. New gameplay elements, such as a barricade system that lets players block off rooms from enemies, and an enhanced camera system deliver an added sense of isolation and anxiety in this frightening adventure.

Graphic

It looks like Silent Hill Origins will make pretty good use of the PSP’s graphics and sound. The visuals look to be much closer to the PS2 Silent Hills than the PSOne version, with lots of gray spookiness and blowing curtains in the trailer. And series composer Akira Yamaoka will be on hand to deliver the soundtrack, which should make any fan grin.

Story

Silent Hill: Origins is a prequel to the popular Silent Hill series. It dates before Silent Hill 1 (1999), hence the name and the “0″ with a line through it in the logo suggesting Zero as well as “O”. Silent hill: Origins tells a tate of a truck driver named Travis Grady on a routine delivery who stumbles across the disturbing town of Silent Hill. Not long after his arrival he realises that the locals aren’t quite normal and the town seems to introduce Travis’ memories of his depressing childhood, reminding him at every corner… He must escape Silent Hill and defeat the memories that have troubled him eversince childhood.
Silent Hill: Origins has new elements to its gameplay which previous Silent Hill games did not have. The camera angles have been re-made to fit the PSP which introduce a new level of anxiety and horror. Originally new a “barracade” system has been introduced which lets the player block doorways and such with surrounding objects to bar the enemy’s path, however William Oertel (CLIMAX Studios) has commented on the fact that it would have taken too much time to finish and would postpone the release further and further, so this element of gameplay was taken out of the game. Sources suggest that Silent Hill: Origins may well introduce some new, and previous characters such as Dallia and Alessa Gillespie and Dr. Kaufmann and others from the past games. William Oertel has offically stated that the ending to the game will directly link in to the story of Silent Hill 1. Along with this, as any Silent Hill, comes brand new monsters.

Gameplay

Horror games demand as much respect as Konami’s Silent Hill, which focuses more on psychological horror and the terror of half-glimpsed style scares of Capcom’s Resident Evil games. It follows that Silent Hill games have been reluctant to divulge their secrets. After all, if the unknown becomes known, it won’t be quite as frightening anymore. Fans make due with the clues and snippets they can muster, trying to piece together the horrific history of the haunted town.

You will meet a few new pieces to the puzzle, in the form of Silent Hill Origins for the PSP. As the title suggests, it takes place before the first Silent Hill game and will help to establish the backstory of the cult, reveal how Alessa came to be involved, and show how the town evolved into the hellish place we know and fear.

Developer : Konami Climax studio
Publisher: Konami
Music Score: Akira Tamaoka
Genre : Horror
Release Dates :UK: FEB 2007,US: Q1 2007, JP: Q1 2007?

At E3 in 2006, Sony rolled with a lengthy series of brief game trailers demonstrating some of the titles currently in development for the system. One of the more highly anticipated of these was Tekken 6, first revealed for the PlayStation 3 at Sony’s press conference a year ago. The game was shown very briefly in the form of a trailer during the press conference, which was cut from a longer version shown by Namco Bandai.

The trailer seemed to blow by in less than a minute and consisted mostly of a one-on-one fight between demonically possessed karate expert Jin Kazama and Lili, a new character who’ll first be playable in Tekken: Dark Resurrection for the PSP. It was difficult to tell what was so special about the female fighter’s moves since, early on in the fight, Jin delivers a crushing punch to her abdomen. Jin’s skin showed different scars and shades, giving it a sense of realism. Sweat could be seen evaporating from Jin’s body and going down his face. At one point, when he touches his flesh, it moves along with the movement of some sweat droplets. The video portrayed a similar dynamic look that Tekken has followed over the years.

The Tekken 6 logo appears, with a PlayStation 3 logo underneath. The entire trailer is close to five minutes long, though a lot of the time is sucked up by this lengthy outro and the establishing shot. It’s an odd trailer for a fighting game, since there isn’t a whole lot of fighting in it. Though what’s there of the fighting is good stuff. We’re eagerly looking forward to seeing more of Tekken 6 in action.

Tekken 6 is the upcoming installment of Namco’s Tekken series, expected to come out sometime in 2007. While there is no official source confirmation, it is assumed this will be a sequel and not simply an upgrade as Tekken Dark Resurrection was.

Developer : Namco
Publisher : Namco
Genre : 3D Fighting
Platform : PS 3
ESRB : Mature
Releas date : TBA 2007

Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Metal Slug by joining the Metal Slug team on 7 separate adventures that span across the life of the franchise in this definitive collection.

Metal Slug Anthology is a video game compilation for PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable and Wii. For Wii it will have unique controller functionality and online capabilities. It also marks the return of SNK Playmore as a third-party developer for a Nintendo console for the first time since the Super NES era. It is currently in development by Terminal Reality in Lewisville, Texas.

SNK Playmore is putting a lot of thought into what extras to include as unlockables and bonuses. Art and music collections seem a lock, at least. How you’ll go about unlocking these is a mystery, though. SNK is toying with several ideas, such as awarding spendable tokens for various in-game achievements. Done right, that could be kind of fun, so long as the prices aren’t exorbitant and no essential content, such as the games themselves, need to be unlocked.

In contrast, Metal Slug Anthology for the PSP is coming together into a polished-looking product. The game-selection screen is in and looks quite nice, and the first level of each game is fully playable. Based on my limited playtime, the quality of the porting looks fantastically accurate, with the games playing just like I remembered them playing. Of special note are the multiple screen mode options; you can choose from a blurry widescreen, a less noticeably blurry fit-to-vertical, and the original 1:1 pixel mode. The fit-to-vertical makes a nice compromise between detail and screen size, and both it and the original resolution mode look fantastic on the PSP’s sharp screen.

PSP version features Wi-Fi (ad hoc) support for intense 2-player action Arcade perfect port of each title Pick-up-and-play, non-stop action.

Metal Slug Anthology Features:

Seven incredible Metal Slug games on one UMD – Metal Slug 1, Metal Slug 2, Metal Slug X, Metal Slug 3, Metal Slug 4, Metal Slug 5, Metal Slug 6

Developer : Terminal Reality
Publisher : SNK Playmore
Genre : Action
ESRB : TEEN
PLatform : PSP, PS2, Wii
Release date : PSP AU November 17, 2006 JP December 2006 US December 19, 2006 Wii EN March 30, 2007 US December 14, 2006 PS2 US December 19, 2006