Author: Franz "d3v" Co

Among the various franchises involved in Bandai Namco’s Jump Force, the one most conspicuous by its absence in the game-play videos has to be Death Note. Now, we know why we haven’t seen any game-play of these characters — they aren’t playable!

As reported by Gamespot, producer Koji Nakajima confirmed that the Death Note characters such as Light Yagami are involved in the game’s plot, but aren’t there to actually fight. Specifically, Nakajima states (via a translator) “This game is going to feature a story around this unique situation, and that’s where Death Note comes into play. To kind of weave the story together. So, Death Note is not [going to have] a fighting game character.”

Additionally, Bandai Namco PR manager Nick O’Leary also confirmed as much in a separate interview with ComicBook.com. He stated that Light Yagami wasn’t exactly an action oriented character, while there would be certain limitations if they added Ryuk.

Of course, even without playable Death Note characters, Jump Force still contains characters from some of the biggest Shonen Jump franchises of all time.

Jump Force hits PlayStation 4, PC, and XBox One in 2019.

Source: Gamespot, ComicBook.com

Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition represents the first time the Sakura is no longer represented as a schoolgirl (at least as a default, she does still have her Nostalgia costume). However, that almost wasn’t the case; as the new concept art that Capcom has released shows, some of Sakura’s early concepts for the game did still have her in her iconic sailor-style uniform.

As can be seen from the concept art shown on the CFN Portal, some of Sakura’s early designs had her in variations of her classic schoolgirl outfit. This included a long sleeved, navy blue colored “winter” variation, as well as other variation with her carrying various sorts of additional gear, culminating in the “chasing after Ryu” version with a jacket and large glasses.

Aside from the schoolgirl outfits, some of the other concept art had her on various sorts of training gear. Meanwhile, others played with her doing various jobs, these included a more traditional looking outfit for a job delivering bento boxes, an outfit as a mountain-climbing guide, as well as a motion capture suit for a job as a mo-cap actor. Of course, these all led to her final design (working in an arcade), though even that had a few variations, including one with stockings.

You can see all of these in the gallery below, or on the CFN Portal.

Source: CFN Portal

Aside from new games, E3 also has a number of peripheral manufacturers showing off their new stuff. One company at the show floor is HORI, who is displaying a prototype for their next generation Real Arcade Pro stick. We have already seen some images thanks to MarkMan on social media; Arcade Shock is also at E3 2018 and has taken some more photos of this new HORI RAP, showcasing just how different it is from the current designs.

The current Real Arcade Pro designs haven’t really changed for some time now, dating from the RAP3 and RAP.N from the previous console generation. For this next generation RAP, HORI is adding in features that newer arcade sticks from their competitors have been including — such as an opening top panel, and an easily-replaceable top panel cover.

Interestingly enough, the top cover opens on the side opposite from the player side — similar to the VLX series, but different from competing arcade sticks. As on the VLX, this much more closely mimics how control panels on actual arcade cabinets usually open.

On top of these, the prototype on display features full LED lighting on the case, as well as the buttons and lever. Whether this will remain on the production version (especially the latter) remains to be seen, however!

Click to view slideshow.

Source: Arcade Shock (Facebook)

In anticipation for his mayoral debut in Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition, Capcom have now postedp Cody’s movelist and stats on CFN.

While Cody retains a number of his old moves (including the ability to throw dirt after a knockdown), the movelist does demonstrate how much it’s grown, thanks mostly to his V-Triggers “Side Arm” and “Dirty Coach”. Another new thing Cody games is a series of target combos including some that involve chaining jabs, in a way mimicking how he controlled in the old Final Fight games.

As for Cody’s V-Triggers, as previously detailed, the knife or pipe that he gains gives him access to a number of extra moves, including new specials and a new target combo. You can check the inputs for all these below.

In addition the the movelist, CFN also lists Cody’s stats. He sits on both 1,000 health and 1,000 stun — basically the average for most characters — something that should ease players minds once Cody officially takes office on June 26.

Source: CFN Portal