Mega Man 9 is official and surprisingly only confirmed for WiiWare for now (No PSN or XBLA versions??). If this stays WiiWare, this could be the service's biggest game in terms of hype and excitement (Nintendo finally doing something right??). Capcom has been the ambassador in terms of Japanese publishers for downloadable games and their first WiiWare game could be really big. Honestly, I'm not that a fan of the Mega Man games, but respect its legacy (not its downfall in recent years). This could be the official rebirth of the franchise that is good compared to how other developers ruin old school franchises (I'm looking at you Sega for Sonic even though Sonic Unleashed is okay so far). Thanks to fansite, Mega Man Network, (not the GBA series of games), they were able to reveal some scans of the game. Yes, this one is staying 8-bit and hopefully it will be awesome (For more, check the link above).
I have been messing around with the Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Online Beta ever since it came out yesterday and it is pretty good despite its issues and limited options available. Capcom's purpose for this beta is to test the netcode and so far it is way better than the netcode in Street Fighter II HF on XBLA. Most of my matches have minimal lag compared to the matches during the hot stretch of HF sessions back in Summer 2006 being laggy throughout. Of course, connection plays a factor to the whole thing and usually I would rather have no Internet browsers up and running when I play this online (Having FireFox 3 open does cause some lag on my part). At least this beta can also be played locally rather than just online as I use it for practice mode. The big problem with this beta so far is the game freezing when trying to join matches. Apparently, the selection of matches when searching via custom match or quick match are a little old, which is one reason the lock ups happen and u have to restart your 360. The solution for me is just creating matches and hopefully people join up. I have been playing ranked matches, but I'll eventually check out the quarter match and tournament options.
Ryu and Ken are the only two characters available for this beta with Ryu's stage being the only stage there. Sure, u can still browse through the character selections to check out the other art for them, but the shotos are the stars of this beta. For Ryu and Ken players, this beta will be played throughout its 2 month period trying to mess around with their remixed versions. Ryu's key addition is the Fake Hakouken (same motion but short kick instead of any punch) which can trick up an opponent if used correctly. Other than that, Ryu is pretty much the same with his arsenal of moves with the Shinkuu Hadouken as his super (Doing it online may cause it to lag). Ken, on the other hand, is significantly improved over his SSFIIT version and maybe a bit broken (hence the video below). Sirlin did mention that the Shoryuken (Dragon Punch) juggle will be toned down damage wise and maybe not be in the final game at all. Then again, doing SRK juggles is pretty cool when timed perfectly, but I can understand how cheap it its and getting it on the receiving end against opponents. His super is still the same and his special kicks have new movements (Hadouken motion, any kick, etc.), which sets up easy combos. Plus, Hurricane Kicks for both Ryu and Ken have increased in movement (Ryu's RH Hurricane Kick takes the whole screen while Ken's is faster than what it used to be). Just for the fun of DP juggles, I usually use Ken online (I'll go back to Ryu when I get tired of him).
With the full game hopefully coming out this fall, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix is still one of my most anticipated games this year because its Street Fighter for crying out loud and the new graphics and art Udon has added is pretty good (screw the haters who complain every day about Chun Li's thighs or Guile not looking right). The new music I think is done by OC Remix folks, which is cool and I'm anticipating new remixes for the other stages. Other than the remixed mode, the original ST is still playable, old graphics and all, in the final game if the "HD Remix" is not your thing. I'll conclude with this video of Ken's SRK juggle courtesy of YouTube user CigarBob (check out his other HD Remix Beta videos especially matches with the mastermind of this remix, David Sirlin).
Here's a new interview with Gears of War 2's mastermind, CliffyB, courtesy of Gamevideos.com (1up with former Editorial Director Dan "Shoe" Hsu). Tons of details are now revealed about Gears 2's MP thanks to this video and the recent EGM cover story. I'm really excited about the new changes and fixes that plagued Gears 1's MP (Host advantage, temporary god mode during executions and chainsaw kills, etc.). Two or three maps were shown in this clip especially the Gridlock remake from Gears 1 (Cliff confirms Gridlock and Subway remakes for Gears 2). I'm also a fan of the new modes that he announced with Guardian (Two leaders in two teams and if the leaders are killed, the team loses the ability to respawn), and "Meat Flag" which takes advantage of the new body shield addition (Gears 2 so far nails the body shield pretty well especially for multiplayer). The new executions seen in this video are also pretty crazy with weapon specific ones (Chainsaws and curb stomps are still there). Anyway, check out the interview if you're a Gears fan. Looks like Gears 2 is truly being bigger, better, and more badass after all.
Off-topic: Expect impressions of the Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Online Beta tomorrow or Friday.
Here's the Expert chart for Stone Temple Pilots' "Sex Type Thing" on Guitar Hero Aerosmith (which is out this Sunday, On Tour for the DS came out yesterday). The Rock Band chart for the same song is below this text. Which one is better? Is Neversoft's version really overcharted with the three finger chords?
Another new Botchmania video came out last weekend and it is another good one. Heavily featured in this one is the WWE One Night Stand PPV and the infamous Cena vs. RVD match at One Night Stand 2006, which was awesome because of the crowd chants.
The Summer Weekend List continues with Part 2 of my wishlist of songs to be in Rock Band (2) and/or Guitar Hero World Tour (I got some ones right last time with Everlong and Offspring songs).
The full episode is not yet up on the interwebs (I'll check it out in the morning), but the trailers are out from this weekend's episode of GameTrailers TV. One of them is the new clip for UFC 2009 Undisputed, which is in the previous blog post about the weekend for UFC.
First up is the debut trailer for the Lord of the Rings Conquest, developed by Pandemic (Star Wars Battlefront games) and published by EA. Being a Battlefront game with the LOTR skin, I'm curious about how this one turns out and hopefully be worth it. The last significant LOTR game is the MMORPG LOTR Online and its expansion packs, so at least whoever is handling the LOTR universe is doing a good job of spacing the games out. Hopefully it is another multiplayer game that is fun and interesting to separate themselves from the pack.
Next up is a short teaser for Call of Duty: World at War. The newest COD game is developed by Treyarch (COD3) instead of Infinity Ward (COD4: Modern Warfare) and everyone is already putting this one down because it is indeed a return to World War II except on the Pacific setting, a first for the franchise I think. With co-op for the first time and some more time with the project, maybe Treyarch can shut the haters up this fall.
Lastly, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (the CGI flick out on August 15) is coming to the Wii with the sole focus on lightsaber combat via the Wiimote and Nunchuk. This is the lightsaber game LucasArts has promised ever since they first announced their plans for the Wii as if Force Unleashed is enough. With likely a direct relation to the movie with every major fight, expect this one to be a straight-forward action game based on a license, but maybe the lightsaber stuff might be good enough to wow Star Wars fans and Wii fans as well.
