While NetherRealm Studios head honcho Ed Boon has been busy sharing hints about new cast member for Mortal Kombat X, it seems that the latest bits of information about the cast may have come from an entirely different source.
Multiple sources, including Mortal Kombat communities Test Your Might and Mortal Kombat Online, have reported that the a recent promo video being played in GameStop stores may reveal that classic characters Mileena and Shang Tsung will be a part of the playable cast.
In the video, the narrator can be heard mentioning the names of both characters alongside Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and the recently confirmed Kitana.
Of course, this could simply be an error on GameStop’s part, but retailers do sometimes get information on games in advance before they’re revealed to the public, as was the case with Injustice: Gods Among Us’ Doomsday.
Whether or not this is a confirmation for both characters, we’ll have to wait for official word in the coming months.
Mortal Kombat X is set to launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC on April 14.
okemonIf you’ve been desperately waiting for more news on Nintendo’s and Bandai Namco Games’ collaborative fighter Pokkén Tournament, today is your lucky day. Bandai Namco Games’ Katsuhiro Harada and Masaaki Hoshino made appearances the latest episode of Month Famitsu feat. to show off a brand new trailer for the game as well as live gameplay.
Bandai Namco previously revealed Lucario and Machamp as two of the playable Pokémon. Joining the two are Suicune, Gardevoir and everyone’s favorite Pikachu. In addition, the Pokémon with the highest number of requests in the recent Pokemon Twitter campaign will also be joining the cast. The Pokémon is currently being created but which is it is remains a mystery.
In addition to the playable Pokémon, Pokkén Tournament also features support Pokémon, selectable as sets of two. Two sets were available in the playable build: Emolga-Fennekin and Snivy-Lapras. A third slot was present on the select screen but was unavailable for play.
Harada also showed off some features of the arcade machine. Instead of a traditional arcade joystick and push buttons set-up, Pokkén Tournament machines use a large game pad-style controller, appropriately called the Pokkén Pad. The controller consists of a directional pad, four face buttons (A, B, X and Y; Special Move, Jump, Light Attack, Heavy Attack, respectively), two shoulder buttons (L and R; Support and Guard, respectively).
Gameplay flow mirrors traditional fighting games. After selecting a character, players choose a support set. At the start of each round, players select one of the two Pokémon within chosen set to use in the round.
The game uses a traditional round-based system, with the Pokémon dueling in a circular arena with invisible walls. The game is viewed from an over-the-shoulder perspective reminiscent of the Dragon Ball Z Tenkaichi series. In addition to the Vitality Gauge (represented as both a bar and a numerical value) and the Support Gauge, a Burst Gauge is also visible. Pressing the L Button will briefly summon the support Pokémon to aid in the battle. After being called and exiting the screen, support Pokémon must recover for a certain amount of time before they can be called onto the field again. Support Gauge recovery time is based on the selected support. Pressing L+R when the Burst Gauge is completely filled will activate Burst, a special power-up mode that allows your Pokémon to unleash devastating super moves called Burst Attacks.
Harada also announced that players in Japan will be able to get their hands on Pokkén Pokkén Tournament in its first location test next weekend, from Friday January 30 to February 1. The game will also be playable at JAEPO 2015 next month.
Arc System Works will soon apply a new update to the arcade version of Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- that will add Sin Kiske, Elphelt Valentine, and Leo Whitefang to the playable cast as well as adjust the title’s gameplay.
While no concrete date has been set for this patch’s release, the developers will be holding location tests at three separate game centers the weekend of February 6. This will allow players the opportunity to try out the rebalanced build early and provide feedback before its official launch.
Specific details on what will change in the ver.1.1 update have yet to be revealed, so stay tuned.
With two more characters officially part of the Mortal Kombat X cast, NetherRealm Studios’ Ed Boon has gotten back to doing what he does best (other than developing games, of course): teasing fans on Twitter! A lot of interesting information has sprung up on social media over the pats few days, so let’s dive right in.
First off, the creative director dropped a rather tiny image of what appears to be a man’s hand holding a bow. As no previous Mortal Kombat character has used such a weapon, many have taken to the idea that this is an entirely new character. Of course, there are still hold-outs throwing names like Nightwolf, Tanya, Kai, Bo’ Rai Cho, and Fujin into the mix, but we won’t know for sure until more hints are dropped.
Speaking of Fujin, Boon has been responding to questionsdealing with the wind god quite a bit lately. This, along with the character’s appearance in DC Comics’ Mortal Kombat X prequel series, may hint towards a return for the deity.
Finally, as far as new information goes, we might see a new ninja join the likes of Scorpion and Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat X. As of now very few concrete details are available, but Boon did note that it’s certainly possible the series’ most iconic group of characters may add a fresh face in the new installment.
Whatever any of this means, we won’t have to wait long for new information. Boon mentioned that next week should be an exciting time for folks looking towards the title. Whether this has to do with a stream detailing Kitana’s variations or some other revelations remains to be seen, so stay tuned.
Mortal Kombat X is scheduled to launch on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC on April 14.
Community Effort Orlando has consistently been one of the most exciting fighting game tournaments since it first hit the scene in 2010. And, based on official tournament lineup, this year’s iteration looks to be no different.
Hot on the heels of Evo 2015’s announcement, CEO Gaming’s Alex Jebailey recently revealed which games players will be competing in at Community Effort Orlando 2015. In addition to mainstays like Ultra Street Fighter IV and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, the event will feature a double dose of Smash with Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and Super Smash Bros. Melee, Killer Instinct, Mortal Kombat X, Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, Persona 4 Arena Ultimax, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, and Divekick.
Community Effort Orlando 2015 will also play host to a tag-team mystery game tournament and may feature Tekken 7 in some form.
Finally, Jebailey mentioned that Fightermania is set to return for a third outing, featuring the Ultra Royal Rumble that was cut from last year’s event.
Community Effort Orlando 2015 will take place June 26-28 at the Wyndham Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida. Check out the official website for more details.
IBF welterweight champion Kell Brook (33-0, 22 KOs) will make the first defence of his title against mandatory challenger Jo Jo Dan (34-2, 18 KOs) on March 28 at the Motorpoint Arena in Sheffield.
Brook, 28, won the belt by majority decision against American Shawn Porter in August. He was supposed to make his first title defence late last year, the opponent had not been announced, but he suffered a serious leg injury in a shocking machete attack while he was on holiday in Tenerife…
Although Bandai Namco Games have been incredibly silent regarding Tekken x Street Fighter, the mirrored companion to Capcom’s Street Fighter x Tekken, Polygon was able to suss some details out of Katsuhiro Harada during their Life in Japan interview with the developer.
Over the course of their discussion, Harada mentions that they had planned to release Tekken x Street Fighter much sooner, a fact I’m sure very few will be surprised by. Their decision to hold off on the title, however, had nothing to do with developmental woes, but because of the crowded fighting game market and a need to put some distance between it and Street Fighter x Tekken. While Tekken 7 is their focus at this point in time, a team of 40 is still hard at work on the crossover title.
As for how they eventually plan to reintroduce Tekken x Street Fighter, Harada has some interesting ideas. “People have been talking about the game for such a long time that they aren’t going to be surprised if you just release it normally,” the director noted, going on to say that it would be funny to announce it much like they did Tekken Revolution, which was revealed just a few days before its launch.
For more of their talk with Harada, be sure to check out Polygon’s full article.
While we already know the official lineup for Evolution 2015, this does’t mean that those are the only games at the event. Every year, we also see a good number of side tournaments for other titles, and this upcoming installment looks to be no different.
In an post over the competitive DOA Facebook group that was later shared on Free Step Dodge, Eric Small of Big E Gaming has announced that they are interested in running a side tournament for Dead or Alive 5 Last Round at Evo 2015. The series has been seeing a good amount of growth in terms of tournament attendance over the years, especially in Big E’s own Winter Brawl, Summer Jam, The Fall Classic events.
With this side tournament, Big E hopes to gives the series’ fans a reason to come to Las Vegas in June and showcase the strength of their community on the biggest stage of all.
Evo 2015 will take place July 17-19 at Bally’s / Paris Las Vegas. More details can be found through the official website.
Every year, the gurus over at Shoryuken’s Tech Talk forum hold a vote for what they believe are the best products of that year. This vote allows people in the community, including modders, vendors, store owners, suppliers, and even company representatives, to honor both new arcade and fighting game related products as well as the people and developers behind them.
This year’s awards saw some changes with the creation of a new category that effectively splits the previous “Best New Arcade Stick (Non-Custom)” category into two categories. The new “2014 Arcade Stick Revision of the Year” honors those arcade sticks that have been released within the calendar year that, while not exactly totally new designs, bring with them enough updates to an existing design. With this, the “2014 New Arcade Stick of the Year” is then reserved for fresh products that aren’t just evolutions of existing ones.
Jasen Hicks from Jasen’s Customs had this to say on winning this award.
I’d like to thank the Jasen’s Customs Family for nominating and voting the Panzer Fight Stick as the SRKTT 2014 Arcade Stick of the Year. Its been an honor to see the PFS go from a fun side project to the go-to stick for many members of the FGC. The competition in this category is tremendous with a lot of great sticks and cases from some major players. I am extremely grateful and humbled by this award.
Mad Catz’ Mark “MarkMan” Julio on the Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- Tournament Edition 2 winning this award.
Mad Catz would like to thank our customers and the community for the support they’ve given us over the years. We will continue to support fighting game fans and enthusiasts in a big way in the next few years and we hope you’re there with us for the ride. Keep fighting the good fight.
And his own personal thanks.
The SRK Tech Talk community is a vital source within the gaming community. It is because of the great minds and hard work of these dedicated individuals that we have evolved the products so much within the past few years. I am a proud member of this community and can’t wait to do more. Personally. I’m putting on my design hat (maybe for the last time) for some key products that we plan on rolling out in the future. The past 6 years I’ve spent working in capacity for this community & the fighting game community as a whole has been extremely memorable to me. I’m going to make this last fight count!
Jasen Hicks had this to say on winning this award.
Engineering and design are my passion, it’s in my blood. To be recognized by not only one but two awards is surreal. I can’t thank the community enough for supporting and recognizing the hard work I have put in over the past year to establish Jasen’s Customs. Being named the SRKTT 2014 Company of the Year means more to me than most will ever know or understand. Never settle. Keep fighting!
Here’s what UD Game Tech’s Brian “undamned” Grissom had to say on the UD-USB Decoder winning this award alongside Phreakmods’ Crossbone.
I was honored to simply be a nominee for this award. At the start of the voting I never would have dreamed my device would tie with Phreakmods’ Crossbone adapter. The UD-USB Decoder was a great benefit this summer at Evo 2014 in both the “Tournament of Legends II” and “X-Mania USA” events as it allowed players to use their personal controllers on the arcade cabinets. It was reward enough to see something I created benefit those tournaments, so this award from the Tech Talk community makes a nice crown.
Meanwhile, Phreakmod’s Clayton “Phreakazoid” Knight had this to say.
It’s an honor to receive this award for the Crossbone PCB. It’s even better that I get to share the award with Undamned, since the USB Decoder is going to be a very useful tool in the coming year. The Crossbone was designed as a way to simplify getting your setup to the current gen, which I believe has been able to help many in the community do, especially the Killer Instinct players who, until recently, have been a little limited on options. This community has given me an outlet to expand my skillset and have some fun with it. I enjoy making products that simplify things and save someone time and energy, and I’m glad that people genuinely like what I make. I look forward to finally finishing and releasing more useful things that I have in store for the community.
Paradise Arcade Shop’s Dr. Bryan Armitage had this to say on the demo stick winning the award.
It is a privilege to accept the award for Stick Mod of the Year in 2014. I am truly amazed by the creative talent in the group of people here, and to even be considered for an award is something I appreciate more than I can say. The TE2 Stick mod we presented was the evolution of the Kaimana Board that won Product of the Year in 2013. While our shop is officially just Susan and I, what we have come to love is the community and community involvement in our shop, and our lives. We hope to live up to the high expectations of the community while bringing new products out to the market, and look forward to getting to know more of the FGC ohana in the years to come. Mahalo from Paradise Arcade Shop.
Here’s what FrankCastleAZ had to say on winning this award.
Although I’ve tried my best to help people out in the forums, start SRK TT hangouts, and document some of my work including my time consuming project on revitalizing 11 TE and 2 SE sticks, I believe there are many modders out there who are better at it than I am. This is why I was blown away to have to have received so many votes from my peers in this category.
Thank you all so much. The only reason I have the knowledge and ability to customize the arcade sticks and arcade machines I love so much, is due to the resources on SRK TT and the people who helped communicate and document those resources for everyone’s benefit. I’ll continue to do everything I can on my end to help promote SRK TT, encourage people to get into arcade stick modding for the fun and experience of it, and help out those who need help as an individual here on SRK in the forums, and at convention/event panels as the owner ofAZHP Gaming Special shoutout to one of our sponsors Paradise Arcade Shop, who helped me finish a ton of arcade stick and candy cab projects with product support. There’s no way I would have been able to get as much done without their help.
2014 Tech Talk Member of the Year
Winner
Lukas “Darksakul” Peruzovic
Runners-up
PresidentCamacho
Matthew Gummo
Timothy “Moonchilde” Purcell
Victor “Vicko” Ramirez
Susan” SusanInParadise” Armitage
Darksakul had this to say on winning this award for the second year in a row.
For the second year in a row I am baffled how I even got nominated or even won.
No I am not trying to saying this just to be modest, I really don’t feel like I deserved it.
Everything I helped other people with, is built on the hard work of others
It is those other people, many who work in the background, unseen who accomplish more than I have but are not recognized.
I just happen to post more that others, that disproving glare of my Darth Vader Avatar and my cynical ways than made me overshadow these unsung heros.
2014 Tech Talk Rookie of the Year
Winner
Tim Deserada
Runner-up
PresidentCamacho
Here’s what Deserada had to say on winning this.
What an honor! Seriously, thank you all for your support. I’m glad to have helped around the forums, and I’m privileged to have gotten to know you all by way of our exchanges here and in hangouts. Looking forward to a bright future for SRKTT!
For more on the 2014 SRK Tech Talk awards, be sure to head on over to the official thread in the forums.
Earlier this month, a listing was discovered that led many to believe King of Fighters ’94 Re-Bout would eventually find its way to PlayStation Network. But I’m willing to put money down they didn’t expect it to be available in a little over a week.
A home console revision of the classic fighter, Re-Bout introduced higher quality visuals as well as additional playable characters. As a PlayStation 2 Classic, it has been ported to PlayStation Network exactly how it appeared on its original platform, which means no online play.
At this point in time, King of Fighters’ 94 Re-Bout is only available in through PlayStation Network in Japan and Hong Kong. The former will run you ¥1000 (~$8.45 USD), while the latter is a little more expensive at $70 HKD (~$9.03 USD).
No word has yet to be shared about this title’s future in other regions.
