For as long as I can remember, GI Joe has been a staple of every young man’s childhood. They’ve come a long way since they used to be nameless 12-inch dolls. The Joes have graced multiple TV shows, comic book lines, and several lines of the famous action figures, but what of video games? You think that the real American heroes would be a perfect fit for a video game right? Well, yes, but not greatly. Alson with a slew of computer and atari 2600 games, the name has graced 2 little-known NES games that were actually pretty good.

The games were side scrolling shooters which allowed players to take control of one of several Gi Joe characters, each of which having thier own abilities and upgradable weapons. The first, which was published by now-defunct publisher Taxan, had players select a three-man team of Joes before the start of each mission. The first of which was a preselected team leader. 5 characters were included; Duke, Snake-eyes, Rock-n-roll, Gridiron, and Blizzard. Hawk was playable in the game’s final mission. Each level was broken into 3 parts. First you make your way to the base, then you search around and plant bombs at various checkpoints, then you escape and battle a boss. The second one, which was published by Capcom, was a little less linear, as you could select which order to take the stages in. You started out with General Hawk this time, although you would run into Wet-Suit, Duke, Roadblock, Storn Shadow, and others after you found them in certain stages.

Although these games didn’t do as well commercially, they were still pretty decent games. Your best bet is to hunt down the roms, seeing as how there is a very slim chance of them being bought to the virtual console. (Seeing as how they are licenced games and such. It dosen’t help matters that the first game’s publisher is out of business as well.) Also, check out Konami’s arcade game while you’re at it.

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Famicom Dojo – Wii Launch Day Special

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The all knowing Nevermore at TFW2005 has found some images of toy prototypes for the 2007 Transformers movie. None of these display robot modes, just vehicles. The paint applications are also obviously not there yet, but any news is news while the film goes into editing and the real wait for a new trailer (and the movie itself) begins.

Keep tuned to for more Transformers 2007 news as it develops…

Sorry I was late this week, but I was caught up in the holiday. So without further ado, here’s the $20 GOTW.
For all of you wishing for a return to the 16 bit glory days of gaming, and don’t plan on buying a Wii (even if you are and don’t want to wait until these games come to virtual console) this one is for you: Sega Genesis Collection on PS2
If you thought system fanboy wars are bad now, you should have been there when Nintendo fanboys went head up against Sega fanboys. Even though multiplatform releases on the SNES were better most of the time, Sega had a lot of classic games as well. They pretty much had to, since they had to catch up thanks in no small part to Nintendo’s rough licencing policies. The Genesis was graphically inferior to the SNES, so Genesis game programmers had to make the most out of the hardware. When they did however, some pretty sweet games were the result. Sega has packed nearly 30 games from thier genesis catelog as well as a few unlockable arcade games into this one handy dandy PS2 disc.
Many of your favorites are here, such as Sonic, Phantasy Star, and the Golden Axe series (including 3, which was never before released in the US!). There are also several cult classic titles such as Comix Zone, Ecco the Dolphin, and Vectorman. Of course, what Sega comp would be complete without Altered Beast? Each title is accompanied by a history feature, as well as artwork and game tips.
Even though there are some glaring omissions, (NO STREETS OF RAGE? WTF?) this is an excellent alternative to shelling out the cash to grab these on virtual console or hunting them down in your favorite gaming stores. Hopefully Sega will give us a sequel with even more classic goodness.

Take a look at the Mii Channel on the Nintendo Wii:

Please note that I filmed this video while wearing no pants or underwear as a blatant disregard for the oppressive Powet.tv show dress code.

Amazon.com is listing for a very very limited quantity of 1,000 units, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 for only $100.00 US. The console normally retails for $299.99.

Of course there is a CATCH! The purchase must be made from the Amazon Customers Vote page, and it will go onsale at 11 AM Pacific time November 23rd. Thats Thanksgiving day. Tomorrow.

Remember, this may only be the Core pack, but at this price, the seperate purchase of a wireless control, headset, cables, and hard disc drive still net you a savings against the $399.99 premium.

Fresh off the shelf, here is a quick impression of Mirage from Transformers: Classics!

It’s been 5 months today since the first issue of the new Gargoyles comic was released and we still haven’t seen a second issue. Originally planned to be one issue every 2 months this comic has been delayed apparently because the art took longer to complete. By that logic shouldn’t we expect the same 3 month delay for all subsequent issues?

Regardless of the excuse Diamond Comics has finally listed Gargoyles #2 to be distributed on November 29th 2006.

The publisher’s production schedule states the comic is delayed until December. Frankly Diamond Comics has a good reputation and Slave Labor has had errors stated on their site about this comic before. When it was originally delayed Diamond Comics reflected this while Slave Labor made no mention it.

I wouldn’t stake my reputation on a November 29th date at this point though this is a more plausible date than we’ve seen before. More information and a review will be forthcoming as the comic is released.