Final Fantasy fans will be happy to hear that Square Enix’s mobile RPG, Mobius Final Fantasy, will be heading to Steam on February 6th. The Steam version will feature full HD support and will scale to different monitor sizes. In addition, a special Final Fantasy VII Remake cross promotional event will launch on February 7th.
– Power Rangers: Legacy Wars Announced by nWay & Lionsgate
Lionsgate and nWay have announced a strategic partnership to create a real-time multiplayer PvP title called Power Rangers: Legacy Wars. The mobile title is expected to be released in March 2017 for both iOS and Android devices.
Oscar De La Hoya arrested on suspicion of drink driving
Hall of Famer and Golden Boy Promotions chairman Oscar De La Hoya was arrested on Wednesday morning on suspicion of driving under the influence in Pasadena, California.
After De La Hoya was stopped by an officer for speeding in his Land Rover and told to exit the vehicle, the former six-division world champion failed several field sobriety tests and was arrested at 1:57 a.m.
The 43-year-old De La Hoya has a history of substance abuse and has spent time in rehab in recent years.
De La Hoya won…
– Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag Heads to Mobile Devices
Bandai Namco Entertainment has announced that Sword Art Online: Memory Defrag has been released for both iOS and Android devices. Memory Defrag sends players into story lines taken directly from the anime. The game is free to download and special limited time items are available for a short time.
– Apocalypse Now Joins KickStarter as a “Horror RPG”
Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now is being transitioned from Academy Award winning film to an “immersive, psychedelic horror RPG” by Erebus LLC. The project has joined KickStarter with impressive RPG roots in its team with members having worked on Pillars of Eternity, EverQuest, Torment: Tides of Numenera, Neverwinter Nights 2 and other well-known RPGs.
Eliza Will Have a Unique Meter Mechanic in Tekken 7
As previously reported, Eliza will be returning to Tekken 7 as a DLC character. She first appeared as a fan-voted character in Tekken Revolution, where Eliza had some unique mechanics tied to her sleep and blood-sucking abilities.
When she makes her Tekken 7 appearance, it seems that Eliza will be bringing with her yet another new mechanic: meter management. In a recent tweet, Avoiding the Puddle’s Flying Wonkey shared a screenshot of Eliza and pointed out that she now came with a 2 meter.
In Tekken 7, Eliza is a character with a meter mechanic. (Like Akuma) pic.twitter.com/aEObzxxhj3
— Wonkey (@Flying_Wonkey) January 25, 2017
Now meter isn’t something that’s completely new to Tekken 7. However, prior to this, only Street Fighter guest character Akuma had meter, reflecting his roots in that series. Eliza thus represents the first homegrown Tekken character to have a meter.
How exactly Eliza will use this meter–whether it’ll be just like Akuma’s, or if it’ll be tied to her blood-drinking mechanic, is as of yet unknown. We’re bound to learn more about this as more information is dropped in the coming months.
Source: Flying Wonkey
UDON’s Street Fighter vs. Darkstalkers #1 Hits Stores in April 2017, with Multiple Variant Covers
Capcom’s two worlds will collide soon!
UDON’s next big Capcom comic event is almost upon us; as previously reported, February will see Street Fighter vs. Darkstalkers #0 hit shelves. UDON Entertainment revealed today that the first true issue of the 8-issue series will roll out in April 2017, and will feature a number of variant covers, as usual!
From UDON Entertainment:
Street Fighter VS. Darkstalkers #1 sports two standard covers. Series artist Edwin Huang provides the Wraparound Story cover (CVR A). Rob “Robaato” Porter illustrates the Midnight Bliss cover (CVR B), which features an array of fighters who have succumbed to Demitri’s gender-swapping power–in fact, issue #1-4’s CVR B will connect to form one massive four-part Midnight Bliss image!
Also available for Street Fighter VS. Darkstalkers #1 is a special Blank Sketch cover (CVR C) and two retailer incentive covers. The Movie Poster incentive cover (CVR D) by Joe Vriens pays tribute to a classic horror movie poster, while popular cover artist Stanley “Artgerm” Lau provides a Guest Artist incentive cover (CVR E) showcasing leading ladies Chun-Li and Morrigan.
UDON has also teamed up with some righteous retailers to produce epic retailer-exclusive variants! Focus Attack, the top-tier arcade parts e-commerce shop, will be selling an exclusive wraparound cover by Jeffrey “Chamba” Cruz, that pays homage to a classic Capcom Secret File cover. It will be available in both full color and black-and-white line art versions at focusattack.com.
Meanwhile, Fried Pie Comics will be selling their own Street Fighter VS. Darkstalkers #1 exclusive cover by Jean-Baptiste Nanteau. This cover connects with Fried Pie’s exclusive cover for Street Fighter VS. Darkstalkers #0 to form a terrifying two-part image! Fried Pie variant covers are available through Books-A-Million and 2nd & Charles stores.
Don’t miss the action by pre-ordering your copies with the Diamond Distribution codes below! Both issues will be available via your local comic shop and comiXology.
STREET FIGHTER VS. DARKSTALKERS #0
32 pg, full color; $3.99; available February 2017
Diamond order codes:
DEC162023 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #0 CVR A (Story cover)
DEC162024 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #0 CVR B (Variant )
DEC162025 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #0 CVR C (Movie Poster Homage Incentive)
STREET FIGHTER VS. DARKSTALKERS #1
32 pg, full color; $3.99 (CVR A, B, D, E) $4.99 (CVR C); available April 2017
FEB172039 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #1 (OF 8) CVR A (Huang)
FEB172040 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #1 (OF 8) CVR B (Porter)
FEB172041 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #1 (OF 8) CVR C (Blank Sketch Cover)
FEB172042 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #1 (OF 8) CVR D (10-Copy Incentive)
FEB172043 STREET FIGHTER VS DARKSTALKERS #1 (OF 8) CVR E (20-Copy Incentive)
Source: UDON Entertainment
Evo 2017: Mr. Wizard Talks to SRK about the Games That Made It, the Games That Didn’t, and Why
Mr. Wizard elaborates on the games that made the cut, and some that haven’t–at least not yet.
With Evo 2017’s main games revealed–all but the final game that is, to be yet determined by vote–the stage is set for an epic battle at the (air-conditioned, presumably) Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas’ searing July heat. I asked Joey “Mr. Wizard” Cuellar some questions about the upcoming event–particularly regarding what titles made it to the main stage this year, and why.
Zavian “mushin_Z” Sildra: Was the decision to stay at Mandalay Bay–and consolidate the event there, rather than two separate venues again–made pretty much immediately after that spectacular arena Finals showing last year? Or were there other possible locations considered?
Joey “Mr. Wizard” Cuellar: It was an immediate win for us to consolidate everything into Mandalay Bay in 2017. Ideally we would have used just one venue last year, but we weren’t able to book a space large enough for all our players. So last year was a bit of a scramble, but this year we think we’re incredibly happy with our space at Mandalay Bay.
mushin_Z: Street Fighter V topped a massive 5100 entrants in 2016. Are you confident SFV can break that record in 2017?
Mr. Wizard: Records are meant to be broken, so anything is possible! We have a lot of space this year, so accommodating tournaments that break records should be doable.
mushin_Z: Smash fans are likely thrilled, but not everyone is, surely–what justifies the inclusion of both Smash 4 and Melee once again?
Mr. Wizard: Having the 2nd and 3rd most entrants last year, with a very diverse cross-section of Smash players, says a lot. These are two dedicated communities and we see the value in bringing them both back. Smash is in fact a fighting game, and they deserve to be represented at Evo.
mushin_Z: Air-dashers might be surprised that both Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2 and BlazBlue: Central Fiction made it to the main stage this time, more likely expecting one to edge out the other. What made you decide to let them share the spotlight? Did the upcoming release of GG Xrd REV 2 make a big difference?
Mr. Wizard: We were all set to let BlazBlue have the spotlight this year, but then that surprise curveball of REV 2 getting announced a few days ago changes things up. We wanted to make sure that we could include both games this year, as we recognize that they have different communities for those games. Evo 2014’s BlazBlue Finals were epic, so we’re looking forward to seeing what players can do this year!
mushin_Z: Injustice 2 and Tekken 7 (especially) are releasing on console pretty close to the event date; do you think publishers are taking Evo strongly into account for their release schedules? Is Evo becoming the “Oscars” of fighting games?
Mr. Wizard: If they are, it’s an honor for them to do so. We don’t dictate release dates, but them reworking their schedule around ours is crazy! We are just a celebration of fighting games, so we want to give the big stage to as many awesome fighting games that are out there.
mushin_Z: Pokkén Tournament debuted last year, and is now out of the lineup–was it a hard game to cut? How strongly was it considered? And were Killer Instinct or Mortal Kombat X even in the running this year?
Mr. Wizard: Every fighting game is in the running and is considered every year. One of the key elements that we look at is if people are still playing it, and how often. Evo can only do so many tournaments every year, so that’s why we included all those titles in the vote so that we can make sure everyone has a shot at the final game.
mushin_Z: Why make a return to 2013’s voting model to choose game #9?
Mr. Wizard: Giving back is one of the core values of Evo that we try to always do. We thought with so many games this year and a finite amount of time and space, we thought we would leave it up the community. The Evo 2013 vote was wildly successful, and we hope to recreate that magic again this year.
mushin_Z: Considering the Marvel hype from upcoming Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s reissue, do you think it’s the lead contender to be voted back into the #9 spot?
Mr. Wizard: We think it has an excellent shot at claiming the top spot. There are however 8 other games that could easily make it in. If you have ever thought about getting involved, now is the time! Lets raise money for kids with Make-a-Wish International.
mushin_Z: What game do you personally wish could’ve been included, but didn’t make the cut?
Mr. Wizard: Personally I would love to see ClayFighter make a return, but there is only so much I can do!
Evo 2017 takes place at Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, July 14-16. Registration is open now.
– Hyper Universe – Nexon’s Side-Scrolling MOBA Revealed
Nexon has taken the cover off of its first-ever MOBA, Hyper Universe. The game is heading to North America, Latin America, Europe, and Oceania later in 2017. Hyper Universe is a side-scrolling “action platformer” that aims to carve out a brand new niche in the genre. PAX South attendees will be able to try it out at the Nexon booth during the event.
Katsuhiro Harada on Tekken 7’s Season Pass, Post Launch Support, and DLC
Ever since producer Katsuhiro Harada made comments regarding it, there has been a lot of speculation regarding Tekken 7’s future downloadable content. The existence of a season pass has only further fueled speculation on it.
Now, the man himself has come clean; Harada has made a post on TwitLonger explaining how they’ll be handling DLC. He states that the season pass will allow them to continue to support the game for a year. This is in comparison to previous games, where they could only do so for a couple of months after launch due to budget constraints.
More interesting is that he states that they will not sell classic Tekken characters as DLC–all the paid DLC will be “special content.” In addition to this, he stated that the season pass will allow them to do free updates. Now while Harada did not go into specifics of what the “special” paid content is, or if free updates means free returning characters, his post seems to hint that this is the direction that they are leaning to.
Source: Katsuhiro Harada