Author: Casey "Waveflame" Rinaldi

Posted on

Chomp on some bananas with Sasquatch in The Nostalgic Gamer’s “Meet the Darkstalkers”

After ending his 11-month hiatus with a pair of recent videos covering Huitzil and Rikuo, The Nostalgic Gamer has continued with another episode of his “Meet the Darkstalkers” series. This time he looks at one of the series’ original — and arguably the most powerful character in Darkstalkers 3 — Sasquatch.

Devised as an homage to the yetis, bigfoots (bigfeet?), and abominable snowmen of folklore, Sasquatch is a fun-loving creature “who just loves being his absurd self.” With his tribe’s initial plans for world domination literally thrown off by their taste for delicious bananas (and object designer Mizue Morimoto’s attempts to base his move animations off of some of the ludicrous feats seen in Disney cartoons), Sasquatch went from originally being a violent, cyclops-type creature to the free-spirited, adorable, friendly and fun-loving yeti that we know today. And don’t forget the variety of aquatic companions that he can summon from the world of Makai to aid him in battle: ranging from flying penguins to seals, whales, and snowmen.

Any competitive Darkstalkers player is certainly familiar with the “village protector” due to his powerful short hop shenanigans and terrifying pressure, but now you can get to know a bit more about his tribe and their history.

Be sure to head over to the comments section of the video to let The Nostalgic Gamer know which remaining Darkstalker you’d like to meet next.

Source: The Nostalgic Gamer

Posted on

Meet your Injustice 2 ELEAGUE commentators, and learn all the details of the upcoming finals

The Injustice 2 ELEAGUE is about to kick off with a bang, starting with today’s Last Chance Qualifiers, which will determine the last two players to join the final bracket of 16 elite warriors. On the eve of the event, ELEAGUE released the official commentary lineup, along with other details about the competition.

Host Richard Lewis will return, along with Street Fighter V ELEAGUE voices Stephen “Sajam” Lyon, Steve “Tasty Steve” Scott, Reepal “Rip” Parbhoo and Zhi “Zhieeep” Liang Chew. They joined by a pair of Injustice commentary veterans, Panda Global’s Bryant “Kitana Prime” Benzing, and David “UltraDavid” Philip Graham. ESL’s Joshua Gray will be serving as reporter, likely interviewing the players before and after their matches.

The Last Chance Qualifiers will kick off today at 12:00 PM ET (6:00 PM EU & 3:00 PM PT) live at the ELEAGUE Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, and will be streamed live at https://go.twitch.tv/eleaguetv.

After the final bracket is set, the players will be divided into two groups of eight players each, similarly to the Street Fighter V ELEAGUE, with Group A play beginning on Friday, October 27th, at 10:00 PM ET — live on TBS. Group B battles it out on Friday November 3rd, before the finalists battle for supremacy on Friday, November 10th at 10:00 PM ET on TBS. You can also catch the action live on Twitch, at 6:00 PM ET, as the entire tournament will be streamed. This event will serve as the culmination of the 6-month-long, worldwide, Injustice 2 Championship Series, with over $250,000 in prize money up for grabs.

For those curious as to why fan-favorite UK commentators and ESL employees Ketchup and Mustard aren’t being featured, Jake “PND|Mustard” Neal noted on Twitter that they simply were not contacted to participate in the event. However, they assure everyone that the chosen commentators have likely been studying up, and will undoubtedly give the game the respect it deserves on such a massive stage. They wish everyone involved with ELEAGUE the best, and look forward to watching the event themselves. You can read the full statement below.

As a reminder, the game’s newest DLC character, Raiden, will be banned for the entirety of the ELEAGUE proceedings, due to his sheer newness. It’s no doubt the upcoming competition will be fierce — who are you hoping earns their spot into the bracket with tomorrow’s Last Chance Qualifier? And who do you expect to win it all? Give us your predictions in the comments, and don’t forget to tune in.

Sources: ELEAGUE; PND|Mustard (Twitter); via Test Your Might

Posted on

Noel Vermillion, Chie Satonaka, and Waldstein blast their way into BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle

As Arc Revolution Cup 2017 approaches, Arc System Works decided to hit us with a double dose of character reveals for BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle, following the additions of BlazBlue’s Rachel Alucard and Hazama, along with RWBY’s Weiss Schnee.

Today we welcome BlazBlue’s Successor of the Azure, Noel Vermillion, Persona 4 Arena’s “Spunky Dragon with Deadly Legs” Chie Satonaka, and Under Night In-Birth’s Waldstein — who carries the EXS of Hecatonchair, and serves as the game’s first grappler.

From the brief snippets of gameplay, we can see that Noel retains Spring Raid as her Furious Action, several of her gun normals, what appears to be Assault Through, as well as Zero Gun: Fenrir, as one of her Distortion Skills.

Chie obviously brings her Persona, Tomoe, into battle, and seems to retain the freezing effects of her 5C, her Herculean Strike from Ultimax, as well as her Rampage and Skull Cracker rekkas — along with Black Spot and Dragon Kick. She also has her God’s Hand as her Distortion Skill; though Power Charge and her Awakened Skill, Agneyastra, were nowhere to be seen.

Waldstein appears to have Wirbelwind as his Furious Action, while his Infinite Worth, Werfen Erschlagen, serves as his Distortion Skill. His command grabs also look as painful and powerful as ever, and it will be interesting to see if his normals retain their projectile-destroying properties from his home series.

The trailer closes with a stinger line from Jin, implying annoyance at another fighter who’s “wandered into this world” — which leads me to believe it’s either Tsubaki, Makoto, Hakumen, or Celica (whose stage, Magister’s City: Ishana, is already confirmed to be in the game). You can see the full trailer below, which notes the next reveals will come in late November on the “ArcNama” stream.

Are you excited about these recent reveals? Who else would you like to see be “on the way” for BBTAG? Tell us in the comments below!

BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle will be released in 2018 for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Steam PC — and will be playable at this weekend’s Arc Revolution Cup 2017 in Japan.

Source: arcsystemworks

Posted on

X-Kira unearths classic Capcom character costumes for Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition’s Extra Battle mode

Earlier this week, we reported on more information about new content coming to Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition this January, as found by notable dataminer X-Kira. He’s since come forward with even more content — particularly a large number of the new costumes obtainable in the upcoming Extra Battle game mode.

We already know that Rashid will be able to obtain a costume based off of the highly-popular Viewtiful Joe, but apparently 15 other outfits will be available, referencing a wide variety of both classic and current Capcom characters. Included will be attires for Resident Evil‘s Albert Wesker and Nemesis, Ace Attorney‘s Phoenix Wright, Darkstalker’s Morrigan Aensland and Donovan Baine, Devil May Cry‘s Dante, Mega Man Legends Tron Bonne, Onimusha: Dawn Of Dreams’ Kaijin no Soki (for Necalli), Dead Rising’s Frank West, Red Earth‘s Tessa, Captain Commando, Cyberbot’s Jin Saotome, Capcom Fighting Evolution’s Ingrid, Axl from Mega Man X7, and Asura’s Wrath’s Asura.

However, his most interesting revelation is that these will not just be simple “cosplay” Costumes for the SFV:AE cast, but that they will actually have unique frame data and movesets, essentially letting you play as these characters, with additional moves only usable within the confines of the Extra Battle. However, don’t get any hopes of being able to use these “characters” in actual matches, (especially you PC modders), as the frame data and additional moves will be supposedly tied directly to Capcom’s personal servers, preventing it from being accessed and modded into the main game.

He also reveals that the Color Edit feature will be returning from Street Fighter X Tekken, though it will be very limited; players will only have two slots for custom colors, one for the Player 1 side and another that can only be used when on the Player 2 side.

X-Kira also notes that, “after the launch of the Extra Battle mode, many attractive things will be coming, such as complete online support to ‘server requests,’ Online vs. matches (casual), controllable NPCs (at some point, there will be a way to play with the Dolls), Endless (similar to Battle Lounge), Quiz (where are Marz and Fevrier?) and many other things.” He also states that Extra Battle will also be related to the upcoming Dojo mode.

Next, X-Kira says that, “It’ll be fun to see Dan as Donovan at mini-cross events with Extra Battle and Dojo, and yes, Donovan is the Cosplay Costume for Dan. Two P. will also have a Costume.”

X-Kira closes with the revelation of a comically dark challenge that can randomly in Extra Battle: a fight against the Legendary Sheng Long!

“And at Extra Battle, also we can count the presence of a character that Electronic Gaming Monthly created on April 1st of 1991. Yes, I’m talking about Sheng Long. He’ll be at eventual moments of Extra Battle, present as an overpowered “Boss.” He then tweeted, “The Sheng Long Event is crazy. It promises 1 Million Fight Money if you win, but it’s a lie. There’s no way you can beat him. He will always get up when defeated.”

He’s also randomly uploaded a video of Cody’s Super Street Fighter IV Theme to his YouTube channel. Perhaps implying that the cuffs are about to come off (again) for Season 3?

You can see all of his Tweets below, which also include Taito cabinet profiles for the debut of the Arcade version of SFV at Toushinsai 2017 this weekend.

As datamined claims of upcoming content, this is all subject to change before verification from Capcom — though X-Kira has been reliable in the past.

Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition will be released on January 16th, 2018, as both a free update for existing owners of SFV, as well as a new release including the Season 1 & 2 DLC fighters.

Source: X-Kira (Twitter)

Posted on

History Behind The Warrior discusses some of Tekken’s and Darkstalkers’ spookiest combatants for Halloween

In celebration of Halloween, History Behind The Warrior will be looking at some of Bandai Namco Entertainment’s — and Capcom’s — most frightening fighters throughout the month of October.

He begins by examining Unknown, a mysterious woman — who appears to be the currently-missing Jun Kazama — who is possessed by some sort of evil wolf spirit, who also sports a visible Devil Gene tattoo on one of her shoulders. Seemingly a “non-canon” character, as she only appears in Tekken Tag Tournament and Tekken Tag Tournament 2, a lot about her origins, whereabouts, and overall role in the greater Tekken storyline remain deeply shrouded in mystery.

He also chronicles the brief history of one of the newest cast members of Tekken, the narcoleptic vampire Eliza, who debuted in the free-to-play PlayStation 3-exclusive Tekken Revolution before finally making a proper appearance in the main series as the pre-order incentive/first DLC character for Tekken 7.

Finally, looking to stray into new territory, History Behind The Warrior decides to journey into the Darkstalkers universe, looking at series mascot and royal Scottish succubus, Morrigan Aensland. He is also looking to do another video on the “Distressed Lord Of Death” Jedah Dohma in the coming weeks. You can see all three videos below.

If you’re looking for more Darkstalkers history, The Nostalgic Gamer recently returned with his “Meet The Darkstalkers” series, with the latest episodes looking at Huitzil and Rikuo, which you can see here.

Source: History Behind The Warrior

Posted on

Dragon Ball FighterZ gameplay from Game Informer: Tien, Yamcha, and Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan Goku & Vegeta

Game Informer’s month of exclusive coverage of the upcoming Dragon Ball FighterZ continues. After showcasing some character breakdowns for the new quartet of Yamcha, Tien Shinhan and Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan Goku and Vegeta, as well as scoring interviews with Christopher R. Sabat and producers Ryo Mito and Masayuki Hirano about the future of the franchise, they return with two full matches of gameplay.

These bouts showcase SSGSS Vegeta, the unfinished Tien, and Frieza battling SSGSS Goku, the similarly-incomplete Yamcha, and Perfect Cell on the infamous World Tournament stage; as well as Android 16, Android 18, and SSGSS Vegeta going to war against Tien, Yamcha, and SSGSS Goku on the newly-revealed Islands stage (which includes a stage transition into the Rocky Field (Noon) arena). You can get a good look at how all four of these new challengers play below.

In addition, Game Informer included a compilation off all of the game’s Level 3 Supers (though they mistakenly omitted Frieza’s Nova Strike and “You Should Be Killed By Me!” as well as the alternate version of Accel Dance, that 18 performs alongside her husband Krillin).

Dragon Ball FighterZ will be released on February 1st, 2018 in Japan for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Steam PC. A North American and European release for those same platforms will follow soon afterwards. For more DBFZ action, don’t forget to check out the game’s two newest fighters, Nappa and Captain Ginyu, here.

Source: Game Informer

Posted on

All Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite DLC characters are immediately legal at Battle for the Stones events

We’re halfway through Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite‘s Battle for the Stones circuit, but the action’s just heating up — with a new announcement shaking this weekend’s literal quest for Power to its very core.

While the Space, Soul, and Time Stones have been acquired by Robert “Sacktap” Capps, Rise|Richard Nguyen, and GodsGardenPro’s Ryota “Kazunoko” Inoue respectively, there are still three more of the Infinite Six to be contested for, along with a trio of online qualifiers for North America, Europe, and Latin America — with the battles continuing at this weekend’s Red Bull Proving Grounds this Saturday, October 21st.

An interesting occurrence has arisen, as the game’s first three Season 1 DLC characters, Sigma, Black Panther, and Monster Hunter were released on the 18th, raising some concerns over how they’ll impact the upcoming competitions. In a surprising — yet simultaneously exciting — development, the official Marvel vs. Capcom Facebook page has confirmed that all three of these new challengers will be stepping into the ring this weekend; they, along with future DLC fighters Black Widow, Winter Soldier, and Venom will not be subject to the two-week ban seen in Street Fighter V‘s Capcom Pro Tour. They will be officially unleashed upon the competitive circuit the instant they join the roster.

So sharpen your claws, equip your finest arsenals, and prepare to spread the Sigma Virus, as these three fighters could make quite the impact on the remaining Battle for the Stones tour.

What do you think of this unique development? Are you in favor of it, or do you believe these three should be forced to sit out a battle or two, just like their SFV counterparts? Weigh in in the comments section below.

Source: Marvel vs. Capcom (Facebook)

Posted on

Get the full breakdowns on Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite’s patch 1.03 with rooflemonger and UM Tyrant

Earlier this week Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite received its first patch, updating the game to version 1.03. This update added the title’s first three DLC characters: Sigma, Black Panther and Monster Hunter to the game (available to play starting yesterday), as well as 21 premium costumes for both the DLC trio and over half of the main cast.

Perhaps most importantly though were the myriad of bug fixes and character changes, particularly to Spider-Man, Frank West, Dante, Dormammu, Captain America, Chun-Li, Chris Redfield, Doctor Strange, and the Mind Stone. You can view the full list of implemented changes here, but I’ve always felt that patch notes are always better when complimented by a dose of visual aid.

On that note, here’s some full breakdowns of all the changes, courtesy of rooflemonger and Unequalled Media’s Tyrant, showing off some of the setups and situations this update will be removing from the game — from the infamous Spider-Man infinite with the Reality Stone’s Infinity Surge and his Web Balls, to inescapable Mind Surge setups and previously untechable specials and Hypers, as well as some command grab setups from the big bodies that will be slightly less guaranteed due to the increased two frames of invincibility added to air techs. You can catch both videos below.

What do you think of these patch notes? Is this a good first start for Capcom when it comes to fixing the game, or are their other issues you’d like to see addressed in a future patch when Black Widow, Winter Soldier, and Venom are released before the end of the year? Speak your mind in the comments.

Sources: rooflemonger; UM Tyrant

Posted on

New K.O. effects for Critical Art finishes revealed for Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition

Amidst all of the pre-release hype for Zeku — who will glide into the game next Tuesday — we may have potentially learned about another aesthetic upgrade coming to Arcade Edition in January.

On the official Japanese Street Fighter V Character Page, Capcom posted a video of Zeku knocking out Menat with his Critical Art, Batsuzan Gaisei. Normally, this would just be a quick showcase of his Super, but Capcom appeared to accidentally upload the clip occurring in the upcoming AE build of the game, which will see a number of graphic overhauls made to the title.

In the clip (which was captured by X-Kira before its removal) we can clearly see the new golden hit counter, lifebars and timer that will be implemented in January, with the final blow punctuated by new golden triangle graphics, which flash across the screen for but a quick moment, before giving way to new blue K.O. letters that quickly transition to gold.

However, when the video was uploaded to Capcom Japan’s YouTube channel — where it is currently set to private —  it lacked any effects, merely showing the CA animation and Menat’s Japanese K.O. cry. We’ve included both videos below for the sake of comparison.

Sources: SDL-Miyuki-Chan; CapcomChannel; Japanese Street Fighter V Character Page

Posted on

X-Kira explains Zeku’s transformations, hints at stages, costumes, & characters coming to Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition

Infamous dataminer X-Kira is back again, with a message on his Facebook page clarifying a unique aspect of Street Fighter V‘s final Season 2 DLC character Zeku, who was revealed at South East Asia Major 2017 in Singapore.

Eagle-eyed viewers might have been taken aback when Guy’s master, the 38th Grandmaster of Bushinryu Ninjutsu (last seen during Street Fighter Alpha 2) transformed from a wise old sage to a younger man, who bears a striking resemblance to Strider Hiryu from the Strider series. X-Kira notes that the “Ever-Changing Ninja” will be SFV’s first stance-based character, similar to Gen in the Street Fighter Alpha series and Street Fighter IV. In the video description of his official trailer, Capcom notes that, “Zeku has reappeared, looking to start his own ninja group and find a new fighting style.” This will be reflected in his stances, as the default “Old Zeku” will battle with this new style of Ninpo he has developed, whereas the younger Zeku will utilize the full power of Bushinryu, playing similarly to his star pupil, Guy.

Though this was a “short and sweet explanation to the ones who hadn’t understood what happened,” X-Kira was not done giving us more nuggets of information about the future of Street Fighter V.

On his Twitter account, he once again notes that the Dramatic Battle mode, seen in Street Fighter Alpha 3 and Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers, will be returning in January with the release of SFV:AE, allowing two players to engage a computer-controlled foe in handicap matches. He again insisted that each fighter will be receiving a second V-Skill and V-Reversal, in addition to the second V-Triggers that were confirmed in the announcement trailer. He also noted that two new stages, Shadaloo Corridor A (as seen in A Shadow Falls) and a special arena set within the streets of Shibuya in Tokyo, Japan, will also be on the way to commemorate the franchise’s 30th anniversary.

Moving on to the subject of Season 3 DLC characters, X-Kira notes that there will be some returning legacy characters, but that there will also be two more all-new challengers. As a hint, he says that, “Sticks will be present.” While some fans are speculating that this could foreshadow the returns of veteran fighters such as Eagle, Maki, or Rolento, some of X-Kira’s other tweets, combined with his new profile photo, seem to imply that we’ll be seeing the playable arrival of the female member of Ed’s Neo-Shadaloo organization, seen at the end of his Character Story. This woman bares a striking resemblance to Cammy, and can be seen carrying a baton or spear — similarly to the Shadaloo Doll Santamu.

Lastly, X-Kira has promised a lengthy upcoming video detailing the history of his datamining, during which he could possibly leak even more information about the game. You can see all of his posts below, as well as other tweets confirming more Nostalgia Premium Costumes from Street Fighter IV, showing off the new Barrel Bonus Stage, and confirming that the edition-exclusive Volcanic EX01 Colors will finally be coming soon to the PS4 version.

Sources: Mikami_XKira (Twitter); Miyuki Chan (Facebook)