VideoGameCentral Presents: The Gamer's Voice

Club Nintendo Eludes America

2008-01-17T23:10:58Z

For a little over 15 years or so, there has been something around every other part of the world but America called Club Nintendo. Club Nintendo is a club for Nintendo fans which rewards them by giving out freebies, and even some rare and unreleased games, all for free. You may be wondering why you've never heard of Club Nintendo, as I was just a few weeks ago. However, after a little bit of research, I found something interesting.

What I found was an interview with Perrin Kaplan, former Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Affairs for Nintendo of America. She said that the reason for the absence of Club Nintendo is because "cost-wise it would be very expensive". This is mainly due to the fact that the US is so big and there are too many consumers of Nintendo's product to be able to supply them with all of the goodies. I find this really interesting because I would think that it would have the complete opposite effect on Nintendo. Sure, they'd be shelling out a whole lot of money to give everyone a freebie or a game, but what they'd be getting in the long run would be millions of more dollars in hardware and software revenue.

In Europe, there is a Club Nintendo Magazine, which also provides members with exclusives such as sneak peaks to games and goodies that will appear in upcoming issues of Nintendo Power, as well as a slew of other things. This Club Nintendo Magazine is also another great spot to make money. I remember the time before Nintendo Power was littered with advertising for all things non-gaming, but I also noticed that once the advertising started, the flashier and richer the magazine became. This whole Club Nintendo eluding America situation really just goes to show how neglected America is with all of the small, yet important, things gaming has to offer. I think that if Club Nintendo did start in America, the entire Nintendo community would come a lot closer together, which is both good for corporate and consumer.

Who knows folks, maybe we will one day see Club Nintendo arrive here in America. Until then, it looks like we'll have to settle with pre-order freebies and game registration on Nintendo's site, which does nothing. In Europe and Japan, game registration actually acts as a kickback for consumers, awarding them with spendable "Stars". Here's to hoping.

Mike Gallagher Starts PAC

2008-01-15T21:06:52Z

In this ever changing world of political rule, video games are often either ostracized or simply pushed aside. However, the new president of the Entertainment Software Association, has started something that will definitely bring gaming into the proper political light. The Political Action Committee will act as a Committee to make campaign contributions to political leaders. However, it goes much deeper than that.

If you are at all in tune with the political world, you know that money equals power, as does votes. In Gallagher's own words, "If I can walk into the office of a member of Congress and tell them we have 20,000 voters in their state who are already signed up to write letters and act based on game-related issues that concern them, that's powerful". Mike couldn't be any more right. Each state is teeming with gamers who are voting age, and having a common ground to come together and act as one is a very powerful tool in the political world.

Hopefully this will not only help gaming politics, but politics in general in the USA, increasing voter turnout within the next few voting years. Time will only tell, but I'll be sure to keep you updated on Mike Gallagher's political gaming actions!

Confused and Upset

2008-01-09T01:10:45Z

Finally folks, the holiday influenza is over! Now we can sit, relax, and play all of the video games we got in December! Just as a little recap, the Wii is next to impossible to find (although we still have a few in stock), the PS3 is still in last place, and the 360 is in second. Nintendo has kept their throne this year as the most sold system of 2007 and 2006. One thing is still bothering me about it, however. Why does everybody and their mother want a Wii?

While there are the obvious reasons for it, easy to learn gameplay, fun games that are accessible to just about everyone ages 4-400, and it's the cheapest home console on the market today. However, being a Wii owner, I'm able to tell you that I haven't played my Wii in a good 2 or 3 months. Before that, I didn't play it for like 6 months. My reasoning is quite simple. I'm 19 and I'm a hardcore gamer. There's really nothing for the Wii that is too appealing to me at this point in time. Come February, however, you know I'll be giving out my 16 digits to everyone I know who has a Wii.

If you were to ask 10 of your friends who have a Wii if they play it often, I guarantee you at least 7 of those 10 Wii owners will tell you no. Most people get the system because it costs $250, compared to the ~$400 for the 360 or the PS3. There are two games that are halfway decent for hardcore gamers. Zelda: Twilight Princess and Super Paper Mario. Aside from those two games, no one plays their Wii. So why is it still the most popular selling console in the world?

My personal theory is the hype machine that just keeps generating mass pandemonium for the system. People see motion controls, they go nuts. They see the commercials with the two Japanese guys showing up at people's front doors saying "Wii would like to play", they go nuts. Maybe it really is all in the marketing. Another theory I have follows that one, but it goes further. I think that some people buy this system blindly thinking that it's the next big thing in gaming and that it will offer the best gameplay experience ever. In my personal opinion however, it's one of the biggest letdowns of the past two years.

When the Wii was announced, we were promised a unique gaming experience. We got that, at least with Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Twilight Princess. What other games are actually getting you into the game like those three? Red Steel is halfway broken, and all of the other games are available for real next-gen consoles with much better graphics. 2008 does have two very promising titles, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart Wii (working title). Maybe those two games can help provide us with some more entertainment for a few months until we let our Wii systems collect some more layers of dust. Here's to high hopes!

Ikaruga found on PartnerNet

2008-01-08T21:50:17Z

Earlier today, the legendary shoot 'em up game Ikaruga was found on PartnerNet, an alternative version of Xbox Live Arcade, generally used for developers. The beta versions of the original Xbox 360 consoles came with connections to PartnerNet, and that's just about the only way to actually get onto it.

I wrote about this game coming to Xbox Live Arcade a few months ago, and I've been in high spirits about it. Although Ikaruga is now on PartnetNet for a 40mb download, this doesn't mean that it will be released sooner rather than later. However, it does show that there have been great improvements from the previous stages of the game, as seen in these screenshots, provided by kemical on the ShMups Forum. You can click on the picture to view the full sized image.

As I said before, there is no set release date, although it does look like the game is just about done with the HD Remixing and everything, so I'm sure we'll see it really soon!

If you'd like to check out Ikaruga for the GameCube, follow the links below!

http://store.videogamecentral.com/gamecube-ikaruga-used.html

It's Off to The CES & AVN O8 !

2008-01-05T18:49:46Z

Hey Gamers,

It's Old Skool Fool here and I just wanted to let everyone know that it's that time again! (Yeah, it's back to school also..I know it's sad:( but you'll get over it!) It's the time to check out all the latest games, gadgets, gear & girls.

It's the CES! A.K.A. the Consumer Electronics Show. The longest running & most intriguing show since the conception of E3. This year promises alot & I'm real excited about what is to come. I will be bringing you cool pics, product reviews & inside info that only a fool like me would dare show you!

In fact there is so much lined up, that the official Red Bull Girls came to see me before I left so that they can give me some wings to fly myself 3000 miles to the shows in Vegas!

You Have to Just Love REDBULL & their GIRLS!!

And speaking of Girls, I will also be covering the AVN and any new treats all of our gaming starlets may be hiding for the new year! (Not to worry Booth Babe fans, I will come correct with more than enough pics to make up for past shows!)

So Happy New Year & Get Ready for a Crazy 'O8!

Is Gaming Really A Problem?

2007-12-21T01:16:55Z

Recently, the New York Legislature made a presentation to parents, warning them about the harmful factors about gaming and what to watch out for. On the surface, what they were telling parents is to make sure that they check the ratings on games as well as they supervise their child's gameplay habits. Nothing new, right?

Inside the actual presentation, which was 34 PowerPoint slides, were 4 videos, each pertaining to a different topic. The first topic at hand was violence in video games. This video featured a young child, no older than 10, describing a game in which he goes into a club, kills everyone, pours gasoline on a cop, lights him on fire, and chops off a prostitute's head with a machete. The caption at the end of the video was Know What's Inside Video Games, Your Kids Do. Kind of chilling, don't you think? This made me a little angry only because I know that as soon as most parents saw this, they immediately went home and returned that copy of San Andreas or any other violent video game that they might have bought their child for the holiday. Furthermore, this message does little to help give the gaming industry a good name. All it does it scare parents into thinking that video games are turning their children into killers because they played one in a video game, which is the exact message we in the gaming industry have been trying to disprove for years. Yes, parents should watch what their children are playing, I fully agree with this, but these scare tactics shouldn't be used at all.

The second video was about a British teenager's addiction to World of Warcraft. As an avid WoW player, I have a few things to say about this one. First, yes, it can be very addicting. I know that while I played in college, my grades did slip because I played it a little bit too much. However, the game was made to be played for long periods of time. Why else would Blizzard devs create a dungeon as big as Blackrock Depths, which takes about 4 hours to complete 4/5 of it? I know that I had a ton of fun with my warrior busting an NPC out of the prisons in BRD. However, this kid had a serious problem with it, one that is rare. He didn't work or go to school, but that's not all on him. This video brings up more issues than it helps prevent. Why wouldn't the kid's parents make him go get a job? It's not completely their faults, I'm not saying it is, but the parents need to be responsible enough to prevent this from happening. Hell, maybe he could even get a job with Blizzard or some gold farming site if he plays so much, anything's possible!

That being said, this video was a very good choice for more scare tactics. I had seen it some time last year while surfing YouTube, so I was a little familiar with it. The video definitely got the point across that games can be addicting, and it also showed how the addiction effected the family by showing the mother crying because of her son's addiction, while he played the game right in front of her. I honestly believe that the teen had some other issues other than a simple video game addiction.

Third, there was a trailer for the game Bully, which came out for the PS2 a few years back. In case you don't remember, Bully was quite possibly the most controversial game since Mortal Kombat. Bully follows a young kid who goes to a private school who gets revenge on all of the bullies in the school, in turn bullying them around. The video went along with the presentation showing how games can influence children. There's really not much to say here that I didn't say about the first video clip, so we'll move on.

Lastly, the fourth video showed an overweight child playing a game on his Xbox (the game was fake, just a prop for the commercial), staring blankly into the television, completely occupied by the game. This is also linked with the WoW video, showing how parents should monitor their child's playtime and to make sure they get the proper exercise and nutrition. How this is linked to JUST video games and not anything else, I'm not sure.

How this will effect video game sales this holiday season, I don't know. My hypothesis is that it won't at all, because I wasn't even aware that this presentation was happening, otherwise, I probably still wouldn't have gone. In my opinion folks, this whole presentation was a little redundant considering it's the same thing people have been saying for years. Do they even do this stuff in Japan? I'll find out in May when me and Old Skool Fool are there!

Mortal Kombat "Linked" In 7 Year Old's Death

2007-12-20T21:48:35Z

Last night, in Johnstown, Colorado, 7 year old Zoe Garcia was killed while her and her step-sister, Heather Maria Trujillo, 16, were playing a game of "Mortal Kombat". What the two were actually doing was "wrestling as they always do, karate kicking, punching, and kicking", according to the arrest affadavit. Garcia was being baby-sat by her step-sister and Lamar Roberts, 17. Who Lamar Roberts is, we're not entirely sure.

According to the affadavit, a witness said that Roberts was seen "kicking and body slamming" Garcia, but he didn't realize how hard he was hitting her because he was DRUNK. Now, according to the news article which we learned this information from, the fact that he was drunk was pretty much brushed aside, not being taken into account. This case has been deemed the "Mortal Kombat death". Several news sources are reporting that it has nothing to do with the game, however.

Now, as we are all well aware, as soon as the words "video game related death" hit the internet, someone *cough*JACK THOMPSON*cough* is going to jump up and say that this is just another reason video games are bad for the youth in the world. What they don't realize is that things like this have happened before, well before video games were even invented. Tragic accidents do happen folks, and that's all this was, just a very, very, very tragic accident.

We here at VideoGameCentral.com would like to express our condolences to the family of the victim, we're truly sorry for your loss.

The Money Behind MMOs

2007-12-18T22:38:01Z

For the past few years, maybe about 4 or 5, a certain genre of gaming has really taken the industry, and the gaming world in general, by storm. That genre is Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games, commonly abbreviated to MMORPGs (not really much of an abbreviation, but it’s better than nothing). There are a whole slew of MMOs out there, each offering their own goodies to the players. However, the biggest one of them all, as we all know, is World of Warcraft.

Over 9 million accounts are currently active in World of Warcraft. While this might not necessarily mean that 9 million people play the game, just that there are 9 million payments going out to Blizzard every month. There is one thing that some people don’t always realize about these games, especially with WoW. The MMO business is a CASH COW. Let me break it down for those of you who don’t understand what I’m talking about here. Since World of Warcraft is the most popular MMO today, and I play it myself, we’ll use it as today’s example. World of Warcraft, if being payed monthly, which most people do, costs $15 per month. In some states, like New York, we have to pay tax on that, so it actually comes out to $16. That comes out to 180 dollars per year. Multiply that by the amount of accounts active, 9 MILLION, and that brings the grand total, per year, 1.62 BILLION DOLLARS (insert Doctor Evil anthem and pinky here). Granted, Blizzard has quite the extensive payroll as well as upkeep of god knows how many servers for the different games they have online, so that money isn’t ALL profit. But still, after all expenses are paid, Blizzard is still making off with at least a cool 800+ million dollars.

Yes, I play the game, I give them money towards that billion dollar check every year, but they do provide a quality game. WoW not only gives players a great experience through the actual gameplay and lore, but it provides a very tightly knit community. I know that in the original guild I helped create with a few friends, I met quite a few interesting people with whom I started some really good friendships with. I know that there are a lot more people out there who’ve had similar experiences as me, and I think that’s amazing. For a game as massive as World of Warcraft to be able to bring people together, especially those who are coincidentally close together in physical location, is a feat that isn’t often accomplished. I know that I’ve never really met anyone too special from Xbox Live, Quake, Unreal, or any other PC game before that I actually wound up physically meeting in real life. Blizzard, along with other MMO game companies, such as Squaresoft with Final Fantasy XI Online, have been providing a unique experience with their games for the past 5 years or so, while at the same time making quite the chunk of change.

I know that if I was making the money that these companies are making, I’d be living in Japan right now in some arcade playing with the world’s best in everything. But obviously, that is not the case at hand. For those of you who still haven’t jumped on the MMO bandwagon, I highly suggest that you do so. Although some people say that they’re very addicting, just be aware that they can be, but just like anything else, it should be taken in moderation. If you’d like to check out World of Warcraft, please visit the link below to see what it’s all about.

Cyber Crime Hits Wall with VGC

2007-12-11T21:31:42Z

Being an international shipper of video games and gaming gear, we here at VideoGameCentral.com have to put up with our fare share of things being lost in translation. One thing, however, is very easily translated wherever you go. That, my dear friends, is fraud. Call it what you want, fraud is fraud. Unfortunately, we had to take care of a pest that has been trying to fraud us for quite some time now.

His name is Melvin Griggs and he is (and will be for many years to come, when his prison sentence begins) a freshman at Western Kentucky University. While we’re not sure what he was studying in school (definitely wasn’t computer or criminal science), we do know how he spent his time in his dorm room. This big guy was committing big crimes. He was stealing other people’s identities by a method most commonly known as phishing. Phishing is basically when you tell people that you can do something for them if they give you their information, such as, in this case, crediting their cell phone bill, making them have to pay less. You may be thinking to yourself right now, why on Earth would someone give out their personal information to a complete stranger? There’s really no answer folks, and I’m not one to judge people.

By phishing and then using their information, Melvin was able to place orders for various items we sell in our online store. He would then have them shipped to Chicksaw Country Club in Memphis, Tennessee. He would wait in the gated community in the country club for the delivery man to deliver him the packages. One of the many things he did wrong was he signed his REAL name for one of the packages. Why can’t criminals just THINK before they act? I’m not trying to advise you guys on how to commit crimes or anything of the sort, but please, PLEASE think before you do something as stupid as sign for a package that YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO RECEIVE!!!

Anyway, this whole deal went on for about 3 months time, making a total of eight (8) different people’s identities stolen by Melvin. We here at VideoGameCentral.com have a fairly extensive fraud prevention problem. Video Games and computer technology are some of the most common products people attempt to purchase when they use a stolen identity or even a stolen credit card. Knowing this, we’ve put together a great team of people who specialize in handling and preventing cases of fraud just like this. Our lead fraud investigator, Michael Sagginario, was hot on Melvin’s trail from the start of his transactions, keeping track of just about everything he did.

Mike was able to trace Melvin’s IP address back to his DORM ROOM at Western Kentucky University. Folks, let me just tell you something. If you’re smart enough to figure out a way to phish people’s identities, then PLEASE download something that will scramble your IP address or bounce you through a hotbox in French Indo-China, or else you’ll be getting a phone call similar to the one that Melvin got yesterday. In Melvin’s case, however, the phone was the but of a gun and the only one talking was the United States Secret Service agent reading him the Miranda warning. The Kentucky police and Secret Service raided his dorm room at the crack of dawn and proceeded to take him in to the local holding facilities until he was handed over to the federal government.

If there’s one thing you’ve learned from reading this article, it should be that crime seriously does NOT pay. We here at VideoGameCentral.com WILL find you if you attempt to commit fraud on us, just as we caught Melvin Griggs. If you’d like to pay Melvin Griggs a visit, he can probably be found at the Warren County Regional Jail in Kentucky, where he is currently being held under a $10,000 bail, which has to be paid in a cash bond. Sorry Melvin, looks like you can’t pay the bond through PayPal like you tried paying us! Also, if you’d like to leave Melvin a message, you can do so by visiting his MySpace by following the link below. Happy holidays folks!

http://www.myspace.com/barmelv15

DUALSHOCK 3 Compatibility List

2007-12-07T01:30:30Z

If new technology comes out, you'll want to know if your old stuff works with it right? Well, the DUALSHOCK 3 PS3 controller isn't exactly new technology, but you'll still want to know if it works with the games you bought before the controller was made. Well folks, in a year of compatability lists, here's one more for ya! Here's the DUALSHOCK 3 PS3 Game Compatability List:

The Darkness
Assassin’s Creed
BEOWULF
Blacksite: Area 51
Blast Factor (*1)
Burnout Paradise
Condemned 2
Cops (codename, title name TBD)
Dark Sector
Destroy All Humans 3
Devil May Cry® 4
Dynasty Warriors 6
echochrome
Elefunk
Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
Fatal Inertia
FIFA franchise (title name TBD)
Folklore (*1)
FORMULA ONE CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION (*1)
GirpShift®
Go! Sports Ski (*1)
HAZE
Heavenly Sword (*1)
Heroes over Europe
High Velocity Bowling
Highlander
Iron Man
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
Legendary: The Box
METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS
MLB 08: The Show
MotorStorm (*1)
N-Cube
NBA 08 (*1)
NBA 2K8
PAIN
Planet One (codename, title name TBD)
Prototype
RAGE
Rat Race
Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
Resident Evil 5
Resistance: Fall of Man (*1)
Snakeball
SOCOM: Confrontation
Soldier of Fortune
Stuntman Ignition
Super Stardust HD (*1)
The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena
The Club
The Crucible
The Incredible Hulk
TNA Wrestling
To End All Wars
Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (*1)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas (*1)
TOY HOME
Turok
Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
Unreal Tournament 3
Warbit
WarDevil – Unleash the Beast Within
Warhawk (*1)
Wheelman
WipEout HD

We'll update the list as time goes on and more games come out or get added to the list. Please note that some of these games require an update over the PlayStation network in order to have DUALSHOCK 3 compatability.

Past Revolutions in the Gaming World

2007-12-06T23:53:57Z

Here at VideoGameCentral.com, we're constantly going on about great games of the past. One game series in particular that we’ve been reminiscing about is Donkey Kong Country. There were 3 installments on the SNES, and numerous ports to the GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance. We’re talking about the original SNES ones. These three games had such a huge impact on the gaming industry of the mid 90s that it practically leveled the playing field.

One of the biggest changes in this game from previous games on any system was the way the graphics were created. In Donkey Kong Country, the models and environments consisted mainly of pre-rendered 3D graphics. Pre-rendering can best be explained by simply saying that the backgrounds were already created on another machine (more specifically, the SGI machine that Rare spent big bucks on) and then placed into the game. The graphics weren’t being created during gameplay like most other games, which causes heavy load times in certain games, they are already in the game’s data, making the game run a whole lot smoother and quicker. This was a big risk back in 1994 because it hadn’t really been done before for a home console. PC gaming, however, was already using this for certain titles. Some say that the graphics were the main focus of the game’s developers, and this caused gameplay to be “mediocre”, at best. However, as a hardcore gamer, I know that playing DKC was one of my most memorable gaming experiences of my childhood.

After DKC came DKC2: Diddy Kong’s Quest. This game starred Diddy and a newcomer to the Kong Kast, Dixie. What I liked best about this edition of DKC was the difficulty. DKC2 featured some of the hardest levels I’ve ever played in a platformer. Platformers are generally geared toward casual players who are just looking for something that they can pick up and finish without too much trouble. However, this definitely wasn’t the case for Donkey Kong Country 2. Each world had its own theme, and this is what the levels were created around these themes. The first world was a pirate ship, the second a volcano, the third a swamp, etc. Hell, the fourth world was an amusement park overrun with Kremlings. That world had one of the hardest levels in the entire game. The level took place inside of a beehive, and the whole level was sticky with honey, so there was very little running around.

One level in particular I know I spent at least a day on when I was 7 years old was called Toxic Tower. This level was intense. It was an uphill race with the poison at your feet. During the course of the level, you transformed into three of the animal buddies, using each other their abilities to progress further into the level. I definitely wasted a lot of lives on this level. It seemed like it would’ve been the last level of the game, but oh no, there was a whole world and a half to complete in the game.

DKC3 I found to be a little bit easy, only because I was 8 at the time and well into my lfie of hardcore gaming. That’s not to say, however, that it wasn’t a great game. It definitely had it’s strong points, what with tons of sidequests to complete and and a fairly difficult secret world.

Donkey Kong Country was the most revolutionary series on the Super Nintendo and redefined gaming both graphically and gameplay wise for all games to come. Cheers to Nintendo and Rare taking the risks they did to get this game to consumers. Without you guys, I wouldn’t have written this article.

Street Fighter IV Details Announced!

2007-12-06T22:07:38Z

As a very big Street Fighter fan and player, I was totally stoked when I found out that Street Fighter IV was in development. Today, nearly 10 years after the release of Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Capcom OFFICIALLY announced development and progress of Street Fighter IV. They actually made the announcement in an official press release, so there's a lot of official-ness going around this holiday season in the Capcom offices. I'm going to give you the press release and disect it piece by piece with my opinion of the news.

Capcom®, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, today officially announced development of Street Fighter™ IV, the next iteration of the genre-establishing fighting game series. This marks the first new entry announced in nearly eight years, following the acclaimed Street Fighter III Third Strike.

In its amazing twenty year history, Street Fighter has revolutionized the fighting genre and created a global legacy like no other. Few details have been released on the new game, outside of a heart-pounding preview trailer that set the gaming community on fire when it was released in October on the official website, StreetFighterWorld.com.

The only thing I don't understand about this part of the release is the fact that they said that SF4 is NOW official, not the date of the trailer. A little weird, but moving along.

Capcom is proud to announce the return of four classic “World Warriors” in Street Fighter IV: returning favorites Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li, and Dhalsim. The characters and environments are rendered in stylized 3D computer graphics (CG), while the game is played in the classic Street Fighter 2D perspective with additional 3D camera flourishes. The traditional six-button controls for the game will return, with a host of new special moves and features integrated into the input system. Mixing tried-and-true classic moves and techniques with all-new, never-before-seen gameplay systems, Street Fighter 4 brings a brand new fighting game to fans the world over.

Biggest news of the year. Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li (I really hope they take out her SA2 from 3rd Strike, such a broken super), AND Dhalsim. I could've sworn that Dhalsim's story was over after SF2, but I guess anything is possible. I guess he needs more money for his village. He was originally aligned with the World Warriors against the Shadoloo, mainly helping them find M. Bison, so I'm not exactly sure what purpose he will serve in SF4.

The biggest people question had when the trailer was released was whether or not the game was going to be in 3D or 2D. Our questions have been answered in this press release. As you can read, the characters will be rendered 3D, but the game will be played on the 2D plane, with fully 3D backgrounds. Personally, I'm really glad that the game is going to be played in 2D. I think that the fully 3D EX series sucked so hard that it chipped a tooth. Keeping the game 2D was a very smart decision on the side of Capcom's developers. If your local arcade has both a Tekken machine and a 3rd Strike machine, chances are there aren't a whole lot of people who play both games seriously. That's the case here in New York, at least. The two just straight up don't mix. New environments never before seen in a Street Fighter game sounds fun as well. Maybe we can finally get out of the literal streets and maybe get into some dojos or something fun. I don't think I'd be too fond of responsive environments like in Tekken, with the floor breaking.

The watercolor-esque CG animation is amazing. I'm sure that if the new machines run on some of the newest arcade technology, the game won't have any problems running at full capacity. If Tekken 6 can have two engines running at the same time, rendering backgrounds and models at the same time with no problems, a new CPS4 system can do the same, and then some. Keeping the 6 button configuration that has been around since Street Fighter II was another very smart move. Now we won't have to struggle getting used to new controls with a similar game.

Another part of the press release that I find really intriguing is the "new techniques" that are going to be implemented into the game. My friends and I have been having discussions about this game since the trailer's release, analyzing the trailer every which way that we can think of. A very good point that someone brought up is that aside from the single throw-tech that Ken did to Ryu, there was no parrying. What there was, on the other hand, was a lot of dodging. If you take a closer look at the trailer, Ken and Ryu are constantly dodging eachother's attacks at just the right moment, but not having enough time to punish eachother's misses. Who knows if I'm right, only time will tell.

Everything that made the legendary Street Fighter II a hit in arcades, living rooms and dormitories all over the world has been brought to bear here, with even more surprises. With the inclusion of Capcom's latest advancements in new generation technology, Street Fighter IV promises to deliver an extraordinary experience that will re-introduce the world to the time-honored art of virtual martial arts.

Features:
• 2D/3D fighting environments
• Classic Street Fighter characters re-imagined for a new generation of gamers
• New special moves that go beyond any Street Fighter fan's wildest imagination
• Amazing locations never seen before in a Street Fighter game
• New gameplay elements provide new challenges for both newcomers and the most seasoned Street Fighter pro.

One thing this press release left out is that the game is confirmed for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. No OFFICIAL word on an arcade release, however, but we'll definitely keep you in the loop about that.

And that's all I have to say at the moment about Street Fighter IV. We will give you guys the latest screenshots as soon as we get our hands on them ourselves.

Introducing the GEN-X The 8 & 16 Bit Revolution

2007-12-05T00:45:42Z

In the month of August, I reported that a new combo system was on its way to VideoGameCentral.com. 4 months and a name change later, we proudly introduce the GEN-X Dual Station Video Game System. The GEN-X combines original 16-Bit Sega Genesis games with original Nintendo 8-Bit games. So blow the dust out of those cartridges and bring back those Sonic and Mario rivalries, because it's time to bring classic gaming out of the attic and back into the living room!

Using it's own proprietary controllers (two of which are included with the system), the GEN-X system features two top-down cartridge slots, akin to the FC-Twin, but this time it's for Nintendo and Sega Genesis (16X only, 32X hasn't been tested) games. In the box you get everything you need to start playing. Audio/Video hookups, power supply, two controllers, and, of course, the GEN-X system itself. Put in a few games and start playing!

We here at VideoGameCentral.com are constantly talking about how classic gaming is where it's at and that there's nothing like it. This GEN-X system really takes that to heart and then some. Combining two of the best classic systems, this system will make the perfect gift for any classic gamer, young and old! Follow the link below to check out the GEN-X at VideoGameCentral.com!

http://store.videogamecentral.com/genx-genesis-nintendo.html

The Vuzix iWear VR920 Brings the Game to you!

2007-12-04T21:20:49Z

Remember when you were younger and you watched movies where people were wearing virtual reality glasses and literally being put INTO the game? Well, the time hasn’t come for that just yet, at least on a consumer level, but we’re getting close. Now, some of you may be wondering why on Earth people would want to wear 3D glasses and look a little goofy when there are other alternatives. The reason is simple, their dreams of entering their favorite games are coming to fruition.

The Vuzix iWear VR920 were constructed with the PC gamer in mind. Featuring twin LCD screens inside the headpiece that display up to 1024x768 resolution, this bad boy is ideal for PC gaming, which is actually what it was made for. If your favorite PC game uses in-game voice chat, or if you’re a World of Warcraft player and use some 3rd party program to chat with your allies, then the VR920’s built-in microphone makes these the perfect peripheral for gaming on your big rig. What’s more is that this piece of eyeware includes built-in headphones, so you don’t even have to worry about having a monitor, microphone OR speakers while you game!

Quite possibly the coolest thing about this headset is the headtracker. While wearing the iWear, playing your favorite game is instantly taken to the next level. After you calibrate the headset with the included software (calibration takes about 15 seconds) and start up your game, the built-in headtracker hardware as well as the installed software will take your head movements and convert them to camera controls in the game. Basically, this means that where you look, the in-game camera looks too! Just say that you want to look at the nearby mountains, instead of using your mouse to adjust the camera angle, you actually move your head and look for yourself. Having all of this in front of you is a really new and innovative sensation.

Another very cool feature about the Vuzix iWear VR920 is the full 3D stereoscopic viewing of supporting games. This means that if your game supports 3D stereoscopic vision, then you games will display in 3D, making the fireballs, bullets, monsters, even the environments pop out at you, almost sucking you right into the game. The only downside to this is that unless you have a compatible nVidia graphics card, this feature simply can not work on your system. There is no word whether or not there is development for 3D stereoscopic viewing on ATI graphics cards.

Hooking up the iWear is simple. Just plug it right into the VGA port on your graphics card or motherboard and plug the USB cord into a free USB slot on your computer. The USB is used for power as well as recognition on your computer. Install the files on the disc, change your computer’s monitor configurations accordingly and you’re done! Games that are compatible with the Vuzix iWear VR920 are automatically added to the list of games that will use the technology, so you won’t have to worry about configuring the game’s options.

While we are not currently stocking the Vuzix iWear VR920 headset, this product makes a great holiday gift for the gamer in your life. We’ll keep you updated on their availability! Good luck and happy gaming!

Holiday Madness at VideoGameCentral.com

2007-11-30T00:38:35Z

Before I started working here over the summer, I was just your average hardworking citizen. Going to college 5 days a week, sleeping on weekends, and yes, I camped out for a Nintendo Wii when it came out. Now, working at VideoGameCentral.com, I finally got the game job of my dreams, but I STILL have to camp out for a Wii.

What we here at VGC find shocking during the holiday season is the length that people will go to in order to get their loved ones the gifts they want. People will tell us that their kids will kill them, sue them, never love them again, disown them even, if they don't get them the Wii or PS3 or 360 they want. People think that we're hiding these Wii's in secret compartments under the floors that only we have the key to. Just today we were threatened of a reporting to the local news because we wouldn't hand over our secret stash of Wii's to some lady that has a sick kid in the hospital. People just don't understand that these things barely even touch the floor when they come in.

So please folks, join us in the coalition against crazy holiday shoppers, especially here in New York!