The latest on what's happening now in
the world of PlayStation. Most info is from
trustworthy or official sources. We'll try to
update this section regularly, but you must
understand that there isn't always news articles
to be found. Have an article? Write to "news@psx-critique.8m.com".
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Today's news -
Saturday
July 3, 1999
"Clinton Eases Export Limits"
"With the PlayStation 2's power becoming
a national example of super-powerful technology
in the legislature, the face of videogames is
certainly turning anew. Yesterday, the Clinton
Administration said it will relax restrictions on
the kinds of technology US companies can export
to Eastern countries, and may have provided the
first glimpse of the new PlayStation.
Secretary of Commerce William Daley held up a
purple, plastic machine at a White House press
briefing on the issue of exporting to countries
like Russia, India and China and said, "If
the president had not taken this step, this
PlayStation, which will be available at the
holiday season this year, would be
controlled."
A purple, plastic Sony machine? Is that what
the new PlayStation 2 looks like? If Daley's
words are to be taken literally, and what he had
in his hands was indeed a PlayStation, then he
was referring to the PlayStation 2, which is due
for release in Japan as early as this Christmas.
"That was not the PlayStation 2,"
said a Sony representative. "I'm not sure
where they got that, whatever it is."
A little less than a week ago, the New York
Times reported in a confused story that the
PlayStation -- which is manufactured in Japan,
not the US - may be too powerful to export to
China, which is restricted from importing
high-powered "super-computers." With
the ability to see inside newer technology such
as the PlayStation 2, the article pointed out
that China's government could possibly advance
its military knowledge. Japan manufactures
PlayStation and PlayStation 2s in Japan, and
would not need any signal from the US to export
to that China.
"We need a better system for addressing
the overall issue of technology exports, one that
is dynamic and responsive to market and
technological realities,'' said IBM Corp.
chairman Louis Gerstner. " - PSX.IGN.COM
"Bleem Officially Arrives... Again"
"In an odd stutter-start fashion, the
two-man team of Bleem, has finally and officially
released the PlayStation emulator that plays
Sony's 32-bit console games on PCs.
With 500 retail stores nationwide carrying the
product, distributed by Navarre Corporation,
including Fry's, Electronics Boutique, Hastings,
CompUSA, and Virgin Megastores, Bleem is the
second commercial emulator to hit the retail
shelves this year. Virtual Game System by
Connectix emulates PlayStation games for the
Macintosh.
"Bleem is truly revolutionary, and we're
thrilled to have distributor and retail
support,'' said David Herpolsheimer,
President/CEO of bleem, LLC. "Now tens of
millions of PC gamers can play hundreds of great
PlayStation games -- most of which have never
been available for the PC. And on PCs with recent
3D accelerators, many games actually look better
than ever before, with higher resolutions and
much more detail."
Bleem retails for a MSRP of $29.95, runs in
Windows 95 or 98 with DirectX 6, and has minimum
requirements of: Pentium 166Mhz MMX or higher,
16Mb RAM, high-color (16-bit or higher) graphics
card, 2X CD-ROM, Windows-compatible sound card,
and 3 Mb hard disk space available.
Sony Computer Entertainment America in no way
supports Bleem or the Virtual Game System and has
brought both Bleem, LLC, and Connectix to court
for there products, with mixed success. Sony lost
its request for an injunction to both companies,
but has continued to attempt to thwart the
proliferation of emulator products of this kind.
Part 1 http://psx.ign.com/news/6301.html Part 2
http://psx.ign.com/news/6330.html " - PSX.IGN.COM
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Earlier news -
June 26,
1999
"He Who Controls the Spice Controls the
Universe"
"Looks like the folks at Westwood have
been secretly at work on a PlayStation version of
the PC real-time strategy title, Dune 2000. Dune
2000 is a remake of Dune 2, the precursor to the
company's more popular Command & Conquer
series of titles, and features the same type of
resource and fortress management of the C&C
games. Dune 2000 is based on the Frank Herbert
novels and David Lynch film where you assume the
leader of a house – House Atreides, House
Harkonnen or House Ordos – and try to
control the spice on Planet Arakis.
What's excellent is that the PlayStation
version will not be a direct port of the PC
version. The PlayStation Dune 2000 will feature a
fully 3D engine with 3D terrain and polygonal
troops, buildings, vehicles, and yes, even a 3D
sandworm to get in your way. The camera will be
tipped at an angle to make viewing the playing
field a lot easier, as well as to give the game a
more dynamic look. Westwood has done this
technique on the N64 with Command & Conquer,
and now it's the PlayStation's turn with Dune
2000.
The PlayStation game will also feature
two-player link-up between two systems. You'll
need two televisions, two systems, and two copies
of the game, as well as a link-cable for this
feature. But any fan of real-time strategy games
will tell you that multiplayer gaming is where
its at. Dune 2000 will also support mouse as well
as analog support on the Dual Shock controller.
We'll have a preview of the game in the next
few weeks. Dune 2000 is due in late October,
early November, 1999. " - PSX.IGN.COM
June 19,
1999
"Titus Snags Robocop"
"Titus is on one hell of a license
acquisition. Superman, Top Gun…and now put
Robocop on that list. That's right, Titus now has
the rights to bring the robotic cop of New
Detroit to consoles. Currently, Titus will not
announce officially which consoles its Robocop
game will be brought to, but the license includes
all systems, including PlayStation, PlayStation
2, Dreamcast, and Nintendo 64.
We have heard, however, that Xatrix, the
developers of the upcoming PC first-person
shooter Kingpin, will be handling the game's
design. What type of game will it be? A first
person shooter, of course.
Don't expect the game to be released until
late 2000. Thank you for your cooperation. "
- PSX.IGN.COM
"Green
Light for Rainbow Six"
"After months of speculation, it's
finally official. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six is
coming to the PlayStation this year.
We knew the Rebellion-developed port of the PC
game was in development – we played a
version at E3. But at the time, the company only
had the approval to bring the game to the
European market. But for many reasons Sony
Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) failed to
approve the game for release in the US. But after
a few design tweaks in Sony's favor, the game has
gotten the approval, and Red Storm Entertainment
will release Rainbow Six in November." - PSX.IGN.COM
June 18,
1999
"Final Fantasy: the Actors"
"The Final Fantasy movie being handled by
Square's Honolulu studios is moving right along.
Obviously one of the first tasks in any animated
film is the whole voice-over recording process.
Today, Square announced a few of the heavy-hitter
actors that will portray some of the main
characters in the movie.
Alec Baldwin
(Beetlejuice, Hunt for Red October, The Shadow,
Mercury Rising)
Ming Na Wen
(The Joy Luck Club, Mulan)
James Woods
(Contact, Chaplan, John Carpenter's Vampires,
Disney's Hercules)
Donald Sutherland
(Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Backdraft,
Outbreak)
Ving Rhames
(Mission Impossible, Pulp Fiction, Con Air)
Steve Buscemi
(Con Air, Fargo, The Big Lebowski, Wedding
Singer, Armageddon)
What's even more interesting is that three of
the actors have done voice-over work for The
Simpsons. Both Alec Baldwin and James Woods
played themselves in two separate episodes, and
Donald Sutherland played the Springfield
Historical Museum curator in the episode where
Lisa discovers that Jebediah Springfield was a
fraud, not a hero. Wow. Hey, let's play a game of
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon…
Final Fantasy the Movie is currently on track
for a summer 2001 release in the US. " - PSX.IGN.COM
"PS2:
Take the A-Train"
"ArtDink is currently heavy into
development on A-Train VI for the PlayStation,
the sixth incarnation of the popular Japanese
"build a city and train system"
simulator.
While there will be versions for other
platforms (including one for the PC), the
PlayStation 2 version of the game will be the
first available. Why? ArtDink feels that the
PlayStation 2 is the platform to base the design
off of because of its extreme power.
The game will feature a fully 3D game engine
running at the system's high resolution
(640x480). The player will have the ability to
manipulate every building in the game, from its
width, height, and color. You'll also be able to
get up close and personal with the city you've
built, walking the streets in a first person
perspective.
ArtDink hopes to have the game out on Japanese
store shelves with the launch of the PlayStation
2 system. Don’t expect this game to arrive
on these shores at all – generally speaking,
this game is tailored specifically for the
Japanese audience." - PSX.IGN.COM
June 17,
1999
"Industry analysts predict temporary
slowdown in software sales with introduction of
new systems"
"When the next generation PlayStation
arrives sometime next fall, the small, formidable
sector of hardcore gamers won't have any doubts
as to which system they will buy. But casual
gamers and those who wait for months and even
years to buy new systems will have - and always
have -- a major effect on the videogame
industry's overall sales volume, which is
expected to drop in the next two years.
According to industry the analyst firm Piper
Jaffray, when the PlayStation 2 arrives, sales
will slow down because of the rift in the system
generation - the change from PlayStation to
PlayStation 2, Dreamcast from the Saturn, or
Nintendo's new Project Dolphin from Nintendo 64.
But after the systems are set in place, a spurt
in software sales typically follows for several
years, Chief Executive Bobby Kotic of Piper
Jaffray said.
Kotic explained that growth in the software
market would hit about 18% in 1999, and
calculated a total income of about $11.4 billion,
but that in the year 2000, this same figure would
be negligible.
Industry analysts expect the PlayStaton 2 will
be the dominant game console in 2000, ahead of
competing consoles by Sega (Dreamcast) and
Nintendo (Project Dolphin), which are also
launching next-generation products." - PSX.IGN.COM
June 9, 1999
"Armored Core 2 Under Way"
"Last month, GameSpot News confirmed that
Armored Core 2 was coming for the PlayStation 2.
According to recent employee recruitment ads run
by From Software in Japan, development on the
game is already underway." - videogames.com
"Sony
Develops Laser Oscillator For PlayStation 2"
"Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
announced today the device by which its
next-generation PlayStation will read both CDs
and DVDs.
Sony has invented a new laser light
oscillator, an original piece of in-house
technology that will enable the PlayStation 2 to
be a backward compatible system, company
officials explained. The device enables laser
light, which is used for reading data recorded on
DVDs and CDs, to be oscillated on a single chip.
By cutting down the number of component parts to
one single chip, Sony can cut manufacturing
costs, and streamline its system. The number of
key components was reduced from 11 to four, while
the size of the device has been halved or more,
the company says.
This new device is a massive undertaking for
Sony. Using this original technology, Sony plans
to become the first company in the videogame
industry to oscillate on a single chip laser
light with wavelengths of 650 nanometers for DVDs
and 780 nanometers for CDs. Previously, different
light oscillators were required for both media.
(A nanometer is one billionth of a meter.)
Interestingly enough, the new device will only
be used for the new PlayStation -- for now.
However, in the future the new device could very
well be used in DVD video players, DVD-ROMs, and
other types of DVD players. Sony said it is also
planning to use it for rewriteable DVD-CD systems
as well.
Sony is still hopeful it can ship its newest
PlayStation system by this winter in Japan.
Source: Nikkei Net" - PSX.IGN.COM
"Sony
Immerses PlayStation 2"
"With a strong corral of internal and
external development teams at its fingertips,
Interplay, the company that's recently been
acquired by Titus, is beginning a massive
campaign for PlayStation 2.
With several in-house teams already creating
excellent PC titles (14 Degrees East, Tantrum,
and Black Isle), and others outside the company
working by its side, such as Confounding Factor
(Galleon) and Shiny Entertainment (Sacrifice,
Messiah), the company is poising itself for some
seriously killer games.
Interplay's Brian Fargo told MCV recently
that, "(the company) is in the best position
it has ever been in before with respect to the
launch of a new system…We have the Tomb
Raider team and the Shiny team working on the
next round of consoles. In the case of
PlayStation 2, we have a half-dozen teams, three
internal and three external teams, working on
projects right now," added the company
president.
It's believed that both Shiny's Sacrifice and
Messiah, two of its more high-tech adventure
games, and Confounding Factor's Galleon, are
excellent candidates for Sony's 128-bit system.
With regard to Interplay's internal games, it's
believed that a new version of Balder's Gate and
Fall Out are likely contenders as well.
We'll have more on Interplay's PS2 titles as
soon as possible. " - PSX.IGN.COM
"Interplay's
PlayStation 2 Plans"
"With a strong corral of internal and
external development teams at its fingertips,
Interplay, the company that's recently been
acquired by Titus, is beginning a massive
campaign for PlayStation 2.
With several in-house teams already creating
excellent PC titles (14 Degrees East, Tantrum,
and Black Isle), and others outside the company
working by its side, such as Confounding Factor
(Galleon) and Shiny Entertainment (Sacrifice,
Messiah), the company is poising itself for some
seriously killer games.
Interplay's Brian Fargo told MCV recently
that, "(the company) is in the best position
it has ever been in before with respect to the
launch of a new system…We have the Tomb
Raider team and the Shiny team working on the
next round of consoles. In the case of
PlayStation 2, we have a half-dozen teams, three
internal and three external teams, working on
projects right now," added the company
president.
It's believed that both Shiny's Sacrifice and
Messiah, two of its more high-tech adventure
games, and Confounding Factor's Galleon, are
excellent candidates for Sony's 128-bit system.
With regard to Interplay's internal games, it's
believed that a new version of Balder's Gate and
Fall Out are likely contenders as well.
We'll have more on Interplay's PS2 titles as
soon as possible. " - PSX.IGN.COM
June 4, 1999
"Enter Final Fantasy IX"
"Just as a Western version of Final
Fantasy VIII finally becomes a reality on the
PlayStation radar screen, news from Japan
confirms Square's entrenchment with the ninth in
the series, Final Fantasy IX. Confirming the
game's existence and presence on PlayStation was
the Square Japan subsidiary, Digicube, according
to reports on the Web.
As standard practice with Square Soft, its
games arrive first in Japan, followed by English
versions in the West. Square-Electronic Arts
returned IGNPSX's calls today, but was unable to
immediately garner a response from its Japanese
headquarters. It offered a "no comment"
on whether the game will reach US shores.
However, as with the Japanese RPG maker's other
popular games, the likelihood is always strong.
What's most significant about the news is that
Final Fantasy IX will arrive on PlayStation, and
most assuredly in the system's fifth year (in the
US), and not on PlayStation 2. We'll have more in
Square's newest RPG in the upcoming days." - PSX.IGN.COM
June
3, 1999
"Massive Ehrgeiz Tournament"
"Square is holding a massive fighting
tournament for players of its newest title,
Ehrgeiz. The Ehrgeiz Championship Tour begins
July 10, 1999, starting in New York, moving to
Atlanta, Chicago and then westward to San
Francisco and Los Angeles, and will pick two
winners per city.
These champs, winners through 64 contestants,
will be flown to Los Angeles for the final event.
Representing their cities, each finalist will
have the chance to win a trip to Square Soft
Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.
Locations and Dates
New York
July 10 Electronics Boutique Manhattan Mall, NY
July 11 Babbage's Willowbrook Mall, Wayne, NJ
Atlanta
July 17 Electronics Boutique Gwinnett Place,
Duluth
July 18 Software Etc. Northlake Mall, Atlanta
Chicago
July 24 Electronics Boutique Ford City Mall,
Chicago
July 25 Software Etc. Stratford Square,
Bloomington
San Francisco
July 31 Electronics Boutique Stonestown Galleria,
SF
August 1 Software Etc. Oakridge Mall, San Jose
Los Angeles
August 7 Electronics Boutique The Block at
Orange, Orange
August 8 Software Etc. Valley Plaza, Bakersfield
Finals Location: To Be Determined
Prizes
Grand Prize: All expense paid trip
to Square Soft Headquarters in Tokyo Japan (5
days, 4 nights stay in Tokyo Japan) for the
winner and 1 companion. Complete Library of 1999
Square Soft Titles and Brady Games Strategy
Guides. Official Ehrgeiz Tournament Leather
Jacket. Free Subscription to Ziff-Davis
publications (EGM, OPM, Expert Gamer).
Runner Up: Complete Library of 1999
Square Soft Titles and Brady Games Strategy
Guides. Official Ehrgeiz Tournament Leather
Jacket. Free one-year subscription to Ziff-Davis
publications (EGM, OPM, Expert Gamer).
All Finalists: All finalists will
receive a personalized Ehrgeiz jersey and an all
expense paid trip to Los Angeles for the winner
and one companion for the finals weekend.
- All contestants will receive an official
Square Soft, Ehrgeiz T-shirt
- Application Process (applications will
arrive in stores between May 24th and
June 4th)
- Retailers (host locations only) accept
applications
- Retailer sends applications weekly to
Square EA for processing (Square randomly
picks 64 per store)
- Participants will receive notification in
mail along with Ehrgeiz T-shirt to be
worn during matches
Mini-game Contest
Ehrgeiz mini-contest featuring mini-games
playable on dedicated kiosk. Up to three
mini-games will be featured and played throughout
the day
Official Rules and How to Enter
Official rules and the latest tournament
information are available at www.squaresoft.com,
where you can find out more on how to enter the
contest. For those who want to enter a different
way, check your local participating Babbages or
Electronics Boutique, or send a self addressed
business size letter for a request for an
application to:
Ehrgeiz Contest
Square EA
PO BOX 28569
Santa Ana CA
92799-8569
All applications must be received/post marked
by June 19, 1999." - PSX.IGN.COM
Lunar The
Silver Star Story: Complete is finally on
shelves!
"It's been a long time coming, but the
day has finally come. Lunar Silver Star Story
Complete, the much delayed RPG from Working
Designs, is now available on store shelves.
But there's a catch: it's currently in limited
supply, and it has only been released to
Babbage's, Software Etc., and Electronics
Boutique. Stores such as Best Buy, Walmart,
Target, and other non-specialty locations won't
get shipments until later this week or next.
We've also received complaints from readers
that individual stores didn’t get enough to
cover the customers who have pre-purchased the
game, those who put down a deposit to guarantee a
copy when it would become available. In our store
exploits, however, we found that our local
Electronics Boutiques had a handful of extra
copies to sell after the pre-purchase. Obviously
the "shortage problem" is location
specific – your mileage may vary.
We'll be reviewing the game shortly, but if
you can't wait for our final line, the game
retails for 59.99.
In case you missed what the game actually is,
Lunar Silver Star Story Complete is a reworked
PlayStation version of the Sega CD classic RPG
developed by Game Arts in Japan. The game
features 45 minutes of FMV, as well as completely
recorded, spoken dialogue. The package also
includes a complete soundtrack CD, "behind
the scenes" featurette, a cloth map,
stickers, and a hardbound game manual. No one's
going to blame Working Designs for not going the
extra mile." -
PSX.IGN.COM
WWF Attitude
deicated to Owen Hart
"Following our recent story on how
exactly the late WWF wrestler Owen Hart will play
into WWF Attitude, IGNPSX received a letter from
Acclaim, clarifying its decision.
Acclaim will dedicate WWF Attitude to Owen
Hart, who died falling 50 feet onto the ring
floor during a wrestling match, and make only one
change to his in-game character. Acclaim will
remove the Blue Blazer character from the game.
"Everyone at Acclaim was deeply saddened
by the passing of Owen Hart earlier this
week," reads the letter from a product
director at Acclaim. "We have received a
number of questions with regard to the
presentation of Owen Hart in the upcoming WWF
Attitude. Owen Hart will remain in both the
PlayStation and Nintendo 64 versions of WWF
Attitude. The Blue Blazer character will be
removed from the game. The Company is also
planning to dedicate the game to the memory of
Owen Hart. On behalf of Acclaim, I would like to
extend our thoughts and prayers to the family and
friends of Owen Hart."
IGNPSX feels that -- given the tragic, bizarre
circumstances, and this late date -- Acclaim is
looking to please its fans as best as
possible." -
PSX.IGN.COM
June 2, 1999
"Toe Jam & Earl Land On PSX2"
"The
cult hit Toe Jam & Earl is getting a revival
this year and the developers are looking at a new
system. Previously thought to be in development
for Dreamcast, PSX Nation has learned otherwise.
"Yes...
There will definitely be a TJ&E III! Right
now, it looks like the Playstation 2 is the most
likely first version!"
In fact
we have learned that the title is already
underway and will most likely end up being a
launch title here in the US for the PSX2."
- PlayStation
Nation
June 1, 1999
"Tomb Raider IV Coming This Christmas."
"The Lara Croft phenomenon, just like an
avalanche, is on its way. Again. IGNPSX learned
yesterday that Eidos and Core Design are in the
works for another adventure game, Tomb Raider IV,
for PlayStation. Due sometime prior to December
1999, Tomb Raider IV stars the luxuriously built
Lara Croft and is likely to be an improved
version from the last three Tomb Raider titles.
In an article written by the British newspaper
The Guardian (and posted on the Web by
FGNOnline), Eidos' CEO Charles Cornwall explained
the game's schedule, sayinf that "by
Christmas(time) Tomb Raider 4 should be
released."
Eidos, however, remained silent. "We've
not made any announcements regarding the next
version of the Tomb Raider games," said a
company spokesperson.
Although many speculated that Eidos would make
an announcement about the next TR iteration at
the Electronic Entertainment Exposition, the
company did just the contrary. There was no
official display of Tomb Raider IV at the show
(other than the live model Lara Wells, who did
appear). But according to those in the know, the
new game may have appeared behind closed doors.
Again, Eidos would not confirm any such
information.
We'll have more for you as soon as possible.
In the meantime, prepare yourselves for a new
third-person adventure with the most popular
woman in the world of videogames, Ms. Lara
Croft." -
PSX.IGN.COM
"MP3 on
your PlayStation?"
"A surprise device has just sprouted up
on the web – if you follow the URL http://www.mp3enhancer.com,
you'll notice a puzzling new peripheral that will
soon be released for the PlayStation. Though not
much information is offered, it looks like the
device, titled the MP3 Enhancer, will enable you
to play MP3 files on your PlayStation. The device
will retail for around 50 dollars.
MP3 files are audio files that have been
compressed to a very small size using a powerful
compression routine. CD quality audio files using
this compression can get as small as a megabyte a
minute, and usually get smaller if you cut the
quality further. The format was devised for easy
music transfer over the internet – small
files with incredible sound quality.
What it looks like the MP3 Enhancer may be is
a way to transport MP3 files from the PC to the
PlayStation for external listening, much like the
Diamond Rio, a portable MP3 player. How much
memory or what kind of features this device will
have is still unknown – the company's
website is extremely cryptic about the unit.
We're guessing that you will have to interface
this device with a PC to transfer audio files to
the PlayStation – another reason why we
question the necessity of the MP3 Enhancer.
The Internet domain, www.mp3enhancer.com, is
registered to Visoly Inc. – the company
responsible for the Game Enhancer (the mod-chip
alternative to play Japanese and copied games on
the PlayStation), as well as the Z64 backup
device for the Nintendo 64. We'll keep you
informed of when the unit will be
availiable." -
PSX.IGN.COM
"Three-Way
Tie"
"The forthcoming RPG saga from SCEI, Wild
Arms 2, is going to be a complicated affair,
portraying the action from three separate
viewpoints, laying down three divergent pathways
through the story but trying to keep the whole
thing tied together into a coherent whole.
Ashley Winchester, Liluka Eleniak, and Brad
Evans will be your guides in this luscious
looking sequel, as players get to hack and slash
their way through Final Fantasy-like battle
sequences, bringing peace and prosperity to their
homeland of the (parallel world) of Farugaia.
Here's the background info on each hero:
- The youthful Ashley (19) is described,
rather optimistically, as a Gun Warrior.
To rescue the hostages kidnapped and held
in the ruins, a gun warrior was
dispatched. Ashley is the one.
- The cradle-snatched Liluka is a petite,
dangerously-illegal 14-year-old Cresh
Sorceress. Just how Japanese men like
'em. With plenty of spells written down
on her cards, Liluka is, surprise, simple
and innocent in character. Funny that,
just how Japanese men like 'em. Still, at
least they've given her the formidable
weapon.
- Practically ancient, Brad (32) is a
deserter. But he's big, standing tall at
190 cm, so we'll forgive him. A hero in
the civil war five years previously, he
returned to a peaceful world expecting to
be hailed a savior but was instead
imprisoned. Armed with a rifle and
launcher, with a headband that is
actually a bomb he can detonate at any
time, Brad is not a man to be messed
with." - PSX.IGN.COM
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