Mr. Universal's Blog

 There's no time like the present - unless you're an insatiable retro-fanatic and yearn for the days of yesterday.  And judging by the numbers that Capcom's recent HD-redo Bionic Commando Rearmed put up, there's plenty of you out there.  Count us among the fans, as our recent Impression of the game was simply busting with praise, and its all well-earned.  The lovable but overly-confident Ben Judd over at the official website let it slip that the digital download title for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC sold a staggering 130,000 digital copies in its first week.  Yowzers!

We've had pictures, conjecture, and now it seems that the gaming gods over at Capcom have seen fit to show up a little Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop action...in action!  Although its no surprise that the upcoming Nintendo converstion will lack the HD-fidelity of its Xbox 360 cousin, improved control and gameplay (as well as stable save-game features) could make this one the superior zombie-in-a-mall videogame experience.

Somewhere, George Romero is rumbling...

1UP.com recently held a little chit-chat with Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono at this year's Leipzig Games Convention about the upcoming fighter which many have pegged (however unfairly) as the savior of not only the fighting game genre, but possibly the arcade market as a whole.  Essentially, putting the same pressures of the fourth to achieve the superlatives of the second.  Talk of secret characters (Shen Long!) and development duties abound, and if you pay attention a backhand acknowledgment of the universal distaste of the Xbox 360 controller for fighters.

Towards the end things get really interesting towards the end when the topic turns to the much-rumored appearance of the game for Nintendo's console, which despite its fancy-pants graphics and flashy colors has always seemed quite doable for the platform.  As it turns out, its extremely doable and possibly in the cards.  Here's an excerpt from the piece:

After a decade of disappointing Sonic mishaps and other unmentionables, it seems that Sega's ready to get back into the saddle and ride like they haven't ridden in quite some time.  Of course I'm talking about the upcoming Wii-exclusive Mad World, which thanks to some serious talent behind the scenes and the squirmy pleasures of this blood-soaked chop-a-lock getting equal time on a console littered with party games and Wii Fit is approaching the very top of my most-wanted list.

Plus, how can you say no to a guy with the name of Herr Frederick Von Twirlenkiller?  Let's hope the chopping and comic-book style madness can live up to its name, although something tells me this is one party the Miis won't be getting invites to.

While first-person shooters may be a rare thing for the console, there's no denying that lightgun shooters absolutely adore the Nintendo Wii.  Heck, they seem custom-made for the platform like realtime-strategy is for the PC.  They work, they're pretty much all great, and if Sega has their way things are only going to get better...and much, much bloodier!

"They come for brains...you give them bullets."  OUTSTANDING.  The sweaty, grindhouse-style trailer for the newest and Wii-exclusive House of the Dead: Overkill looks exactly how it should - frantic, fun, and totally outlandish.  What a nice mid-week surprise this was for me, as I was just asking myself what the next shooter-adventure for my Zapper-hungry console would be.  Stupid, silly fun never goes out of style!

Long-time Akuma/Gouki fans (aka mega-cheapies!) will be thrilled to hear that their spiky-haired hero is returning to the next installment in the franchise, but where most other outlets have only shown a few choice screenshots (where, addmittedly the game doesn't look its absolute best) the always faithful world of YouTube has the real deal.  Yes, there's some truly grand Akuma/Gouki action just above for your gazing eyeballs.

Or some truly agonzing Akuma/Gouki ownage I should say!  After being bored to tears with Soul Calibur IV (sorry Namreh, its TWO words!) my anticipation as this being the savior of the fighting genre is getting unrealistically high.  Am I just setting myself up for disappointment?  Or is this 1997 all over again...?

While the upcoming sandbox sequel Saint's Row 2 will feature a genuine, tried-and-true porn star with Tera Patrick (real name Linda Ann Hopkins) it looks like EA will have to settle for sloppy seconds with a sub-C Level imitation.  Kim Kardashian, who outside of a 'stolen' sex-tape seems to have little talent other than narcissism, is joining the ranks of the upcoming button-masher Facebreaker boxing game.

With developers either leaving or considerably scaling back their efforts on the flagging PC games market, it shouldn't come as any surprise when one of the industry's most powerful (and popular) companies makes the case that PC gaming just ain't what it used to be.  John Carmack of id Software chatted it up with industry rag Toms Hardware for a compelling interview that centered around the upcoming title Rage for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.  It didn't take long for the conversation to center on the 500 lb elephant in the room:

"We still think the PC is a market worth supporting, but we’re not making decision around the PC. It’s probably more of the junior partner in the cross-platform strategy..."

Grand Theft Auto 4 coming to the PC just in time for the holidays (November, to be precise)?  Not quite so shocking, but for the dozen or so of you holding out for a PC version of the game that wowed the Xbox 360 and PS3 crowd earlier this year, the long wait is nearly over.  Rockstar Games recently spilled the beans in a tightly worded little blurb on the official site, with more details on the way.

Now how about a GTA4 version for a platform with a dwindling fanbase and exodus of developers?  Oh wait...its already coming to the PC gaming market.  *whipping sound*  Sorry, but you know its true!

Over at that bastion of goodwill towards men (aka Gamasutra) a rather fascinating and fun interview with Capcom producer Hironobu Takeshita has taken place.  For those of you who don't know - and I'd wager that be quite a few - Takeshita is the producer behind what is potentially the most controversial game in ages, Mega Man 9.  How is that even remotely controversial you might ask?  Well, as the game is essentially an 8-bit NES game being designed and sold in 2008, that meant eschewing such 'necessities' as HD graphics, surround sound, sexy violence, and of course over-abundances of cinematic film.  This of course leaves the gameplay to sell itself.  Controversial! 

How's that little beauty for your vision right about now?  Turns out that despite the spectacular fall that is The Love Guru, the world still loves - nay, needs - more Mike Meyers character comedy and they're gonna get it!  The funnyman is already at work on a 4th official Austin Powers film, and if reports are to be believed, it's all about daddy issues this time around.  Speculation has the next one primarily dealing with Dr. Evil and his son (Seth Green), and no doubt the issues that a family that includes clones, cryogenetics, world-domination, and sharks (with lazer-beams) must face up to.

No word yet on the return of Fat Bastard, Goldmember, or even Rob Lowe to the mix...but greater minds than ours are on the job.