Later this month, Konami will be bringing Dracula X to the US for the first time ever as a PSP remake of the original PC Engine game. The original version of the game, as well as Symphony of the Night, will both be available as hidden extras on the disc. No time like the present to look at the most recent entry in the series. This follow up to 2005’s Dawn of Sorrow, sticks closely to the franchise’s more recent “Metroidvania” style of gameplay while adding in some new twists of its own. Not the least of which is that you’ll be controlling two characters at once, each with their own skills and abilities. Features such as this help keep the formula as enjoyable as it has been in the past several entries in the series.
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Okay, I realize I shouldn’t like this game as much as I do, but in spite of its over emphasis on the female form, slightly sluggish yet simple play control, and lack of variety in its play modes, it can actually become a bit enjoyable if you don’t expect much from it. Developed by Yuke’s Future Media Creators (you know them from the Smackdown games) and published by Konami (you know them from Metal Gear Solid, Castlevania, Contra, and dozens of other great franchises), RRXX is a sequel to 2004’s Rumble Roses, a Playstation 2 wrestling game. The game’s big hook is that it features an all-female cast. Each of them scantily clad to boot. This game clearly isn’t for everyone.
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Light gun shooters, fighting games, and Dance Dance Revolution are pretty much the only reasons people visit arcades these days. Even so, with so many gun games available, it takes more than just pasting a gun onto a cabinet to get a gamer’s attention, and Konami has never disappointed in this regard. Even back in the days with Lethal Enforcers and its realistic digitized graphics, Konami created many innovative entries in the genre. One of its best additions is the Silent Scope. It featured a huge sniper-rifle peripheral attached to the cabinet, and it simulated the experience of being a real anti-terrorist sniper (to a certain extent of course). You had to use strategy and planning in taking your shots. Shooting erratically like in other shooters will only alert the enemy to your presence quicker and make your mission that much harder. This tense atmosphere made Silent Scope unique from other light gun games. Several versions of the game have appeared on Dreamcast, Playstation 2, and even the Game Boy Advance. However, Konami has put all the games from the series on this Xbox compilation. It contains Silent Scope 1 and 2, EX (the exclusive arcade game) and Silent Scope 3 (a Playstation 2 exclusive entry featuring a stage select). Like most shooters, the games tend to be short. However, the games contain several unlockable extras that should extend the replay value some. There is also a light gun available for use with this compilation. Although its a bit hard to find, it should act as a suitable replacement for the arcade game’s huge gun. Even without it, the controls work quite responsively. Getting 4 games on one disc isn’t a bad thing, and its one of the best gun franchises besides Time Crisis. Fans of the genre should check it out.

Capcom’s Street Fighter series was a first in gaming, particularly in the one-on-one fighting game genre. While it didn’t create the genre, it helped launch it into mainstream. It introduced the popular 6-button attack scheme, multiple selectable characters, and combo attacks that made use of joystick motions. Unfortunately, it was also one of the first games to receive multiple revisions, particular with Street Fighter 2. By 1995, we had no less than 5 different versions of the game. Players were begging for more, and Capcom’s inability to count to three became somewhat of a running gag in video games. Thankfully Capcom finally gave us something new. Street Fighter Alpha, with a storyline that took place between Street Fighter 1 and 2, gave the series a much needed update with new characters (including many from the original Street Fighter and Final Fight), attacks, and a new fighting system. It wasn’t exactly Street Fighter 3, but fans ate it up all the same.
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In less than 48 hours, one of the greatest first person shooter franchises will make its return. So what better time than the present to take a look at one of the other types of shooters? Before FPS games, 2-d side scrollers (and their cousins the vertical scrolling shooters) ruled over gaming. They came at a dime a dozen, but three series stood out amongst the rest: Darius, R-Type, and Konami’s Gradius. Gradius had some awesome levels, cool music, challenging gameplay, and a unique power-up system. There have been several classic entries in the series, including the spin-off series Parodius, and the two-play cooperative Life Force/Salamander. Lets take a look at this classic series, becuase its as gamers, it’s imperative that we don’t forget where we came from, particularly in this age of Unreal Engine 3 graphics, Havok Physics, and Emotion engines.
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We’re a bit late this week due to the outage, but we’re back. I’m gonna give you the $20 GOTW and the Lost Classics at the same time this week, as to not to overshadow aDam’s Mexican Independence day. One of this week’s featured games is one of the all time greats of the RTS genre, while the other is one of the few good movie based games of the 16-bit era. So, lets waste no further time in getting started. Click the jump and come ride with me to your local video game dealers bargain bin.
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This week marks the second anniversary of our popular $20 Game of the week column. We’ve certainly come a long way, yet it seems like only yesterday I started this thing off by raving about Outlaw Tennis. Now it’s two years later, and we’re still here. So what better way to commemorate my second anniversary than with one of gaming’s most prolific companies? Read on after the jump to learn about one of the great masters of 2-d fighting, SNK. Or rather, SNK Playmore as they are known as these days.
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PSP Metal Gear Fans have a reason to rejoice, for now there is an actual factual Metal Gear Solid game set within the series’s canon. The two MGS Acid games were nice, but their card game style can’t replace the stealth action that the series is known for. With the PSP’s control scheme, some big changes had to be made to the actual gameplay. Even so, it’s the same style of Metal Gear that we know and love.

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