From SD Tekken, we’ve got some details on the arcade version of Tekken 6. While a few configurations will be available, the one pictured above is the most awesome. It includes 4 monitors so that 2 matches can happen at once with each player getting their own screen. Cost? $36,000. Yeah, suddenly the $700 you’d have to blow to get PS3, the game, and an extra controller is pretty low.

There will be a new “rage” system where as a fighter’s health goes down, his/her ability to do damage goes up. They’re also bringing back the customization from Tekken 5 and adding items that affect your actual in game performance. Crazy!

There is a mountain of info on this page, including character lists, all the released flyers and more stuff than a casual player could possibly find interesting.

Newsweek’s N’Gai Croal dropped a bomb this week, that the next gen sequel to Katamari Damacy would be exclusive to Xbox 360. Gamespot ups the ante a bit more, announcing that it will hit Xbox Live Arcade. Namco announced nothing.

One look at the above video, and a download title makes sense. Katamari was never a graphically intensive game, since so much stuff had to be on screen at once, detail remainded low. A Xbox 360, PS3, or even Wii release would be more detailed. The first footage clearly looks no better than the PS2 is capable of, meaning the game is likely limited by size for a download. There will be 4 Player online multiplayer and new levels, which all anyone wanted anyway.

And to think only 6 short months ago, Xbox Live’s Ross Erickson called the rumor of Katamari on XBLA “total crap“

Download mov or wmv

Little more than a couple stills and a new logo, but it confirms a 2008 release on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

After Namco accidentally mentioned that a new Soul Calibur game was in the works, we assumed it would be Soul Calibur IV. Last month Namco announced Soul Calibur Legends on Wii, and I let my guard down assuming it might be another few years before another entry in the series.

Well now EGM’s latest issue is teasing a world exclusive look at Soul Calibur IV in their July issue. Thats still a month away, but how exciting! I mean, I guess its exciting. When did we get to the point where game companies start announcing when they’ll make announcements? Bliazzard teased they’d announce a game before actually announcing Starcraft II, GTA IV’s page was a countdown clock to a trailer that still said nothing, and now we’re getting even deeper in the murky depths of marketing hype by buying a magazine saying what will be in the next magazine promoting a game that won’t be out for a while. Why doesn’t Namco just give me a trailer and then shut up about it until its done?

Oh, Soul Calibur, I can’t stay mad at you. Please be multi-platform and hold some kind of online match system!

Its been less than 24 hours since we heard about Adventures in “Soul Calibur” but here are some art stolen from 1UP!

Soul Calibur is the universally accepted fighting game of choice at the Powet offices, and any expansion on that world is welcome. When we initially heard about this game, the word came down we’d play as Siegfried, but that killer artwork of Ivy makes me thing we’ll see lots of playable characters.

So now the question– Will this be the next Death By Degrees or Shaolin Monks?

Like Soul Calibur, but not a big fighting-game buff? Seems there might be an upcoming alternative.

Soul Calibur Legends has been announced by Namco to be released for the Wii, and has been dubbed as an “adventure game” rather than the series usual forte with fighting. The player will travel through the 16th century, and will run into the Soul Calibur crew along their way. Sword-based combat will obviously utilize the Wiimote for the basics of Hack’n Slash. A release date has not, as of yet, been released to the general public, and will be anxiously awaited in the future.

If this type of gameplay seems familiar, it should. A similar type of “adventure combat” was used in fellow fighter series Mortal Kombat’s newest release Armageddeon, where the character ran around in “Konquest Mode” collecting items and fighting enemies, and would occationally enter into into a Combat Mode, where you would then fight your opponent one-on-one like you would in the regular fighting mode. Whether or not Soul Calibur means to do the same or something similar remains to be seen.

This week’s edition of Famitsu has an article on the new addition to the SC series, so check it out.

Lets start this off with some good news on a freebie: Game|Life reports that the first ever release of a high-definition episode of South Park will hit Xbox Live Marketplace. Starting Tuesday March 6, the Season 8 classic “Good Times With Weapons” will be available to Gold members for no cost for 2 weeks. Those without Xbox 360 or Live can still get the episode: On March 20 Best Buy is giving an HD-DVD for free with the purchase of any Xbox HD DVD player or a 360.

Personally, I grabbed Alien Hominid and Ms Pac-Man on Live Arcade this week. Alien Hominid is about the hardest game I’ve ever played on XBLA, and includes a boss event I cannot pass because I have no idea what to shoot. Ms Pac-Man I cleared all 200 Achievement points in under 2 hours. Go figure. Worms HD finally drops next week for another 800 points ($10), but I’ll pass until I actually finish Alien Hominid.

Tekken finally made it to the North American Playstation Network. Which is pretty good if you have a 1080p TV, don’t own the PS2 or the PSP versions. Nah, its budget priced and worth your dollar to get it in the prettiest format available. I understand you can buy Jin a new hat in this one. The much hyped Warhawk sequel from Sony has been downgraded from a full game to a Multiplayer-only download title. Well at least they won’t charge you an arm and a leg for it now.

The best game on the download circuit this week has to go to the best game ever made, The Legend Of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. Nearly a decade after release, its still got the highest rating of any game released before or since. $10 is a hefty sum on Wii‘s Virtual Console, but considering how vast the game is, its a bargain. Nintendo obviously knows how awesome this is, as its been released on the GameCube twice, but if you missed those or (god forbid) the N64 original, now is the time.

You knew it was coming. Two new characters, Leo and Zafina are unveiled.

Namco proudly displayed the game for the first time at Japan’s AOU 2007 coin-op exhibition. Tekken Official has been updated with several screen shots and a short trailer.

Tekken 6 will undoubtedly land on the PS3 sometime after its arcade run, but with Virtua Fighter 5 jumping ship to Xbox 360, is is possible Namco will finally go multiplatform?