- In case you haven't seen it: a few weeks back in the wake of the news of Metal Slug XX SNK announced a July 29th release date for NeoGeo Heroes: Ultimate Shooting for the PSP, to be priced at 5040 yen. It will also include an arranged version of KOF SKY STAGE, which was released in arcades in January to much acclaim and is also planned to be available as an XBLA title this summer. The game will have a large list of playable characters making an appearance:
- Marco Rossi (Metal Slug)
- Iroha (Samurai Shodown VI)
- Kyo Kusanagi (The King of Fighters)
- Iori Yagami (The King of Fighters)
- Terry Bogard (Fatal Fury)
- Mai Shiranui (Fatal Fury)
- Athena Asamiya (Psycho Soldier)
- Kula Diamond (The King of Fighters)
- SYDIII ( Alpha Mission / ASO: Armored Scrum Object )
Official site.
Famitsu article.
Trailer.
- Naruto Shippuden: Narutimate Storm 2 / Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 is due for a fall 2010 release in Japan, Europe and North America. Trailer.
- Ys Vs Sora No Kiseki: Alternative Saga, which uses Nihon Falcom's modified Ys engine and is essentially a fighting / RPG hybrid crossover in the vein of Dissidia: Final Fantasy and Namco's Tales Of VS., is due out in Japan on July 29th for the PSP, for 5800 yen. Four player matches are possible with ad-hoc. Preview video ( no actual gameplay shown ).
- Senko No Ronde DUO: Disunited Order's NTSC-J release will launch in Japan on May 20th for the Xbox 360. G.Rev Official Console Release Trailer.
- Dragonball Raging Blast 2 is in development by Spike for the Xbox 360 and PS3 with a roster of over 90 playable characters, including some never seen in a Dragonball fighter. Shonen Jump magazine scan. Official site.
- Dragonball Tag VS, the latest PSP fighter based on the venerable anime series, is in development by Namco Bandai and due out this fall. Screenshots from Magic Box.
- Sony is also bringing out another perennial Shonen Jump favorite, the newest in the Bleach Heat The Soul series, Bleach: Heat The Soul 7, to the PSP sometime this year. Expect the addition of four player fighting, a massive amount of characters, and the addition of giant, fluidly animated bosses for specialized multiplayer battles. Shonen Jump scan. Official site.
- Subtle Style, the developers behind Akatsuki Blitzkampf and its arcade-only Naomi sequel Akatsuki Ausf.Achse are going all out for their third game, Enuain Kanzen Sekai: EN-Eins Perfektewelt / Enuain: The Perfect World, set to take place in the Akatsuki universe and running on the same hardware that powers King Of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match. AM Net's blog report on the Kohatsu location test. Enuain: The Perfect World trailer. System / How To Play 4koma1. 4koma 2. Movelist. Location test footage. Nico Video footage.
- It goes without saying that Marvel Vs Capcom 3: Fate Of Two Worlds is overdue. The game uses the MT framework engine that powers Capcom's Resident Evil 5 and Lost Planet 2 games. Characters confirmed so far: Ryu, Chris Redfield, Dante, Felicia, Morrigan, Hulk, Captain America, Wolverine, Iron Man, Deadpool. Currently due for a Spring 2011 release. Official trailer. Developer blog.
- By all appearances, FK Digital ( developer of the Super Cosplay War Ultra doujin series )'s arcade only fighter Chaos Code is no longer being published by Arc System Works but has had several very successful location tests. Here's hoping it doesn't get lost in the shuffle. Official site. Location test footage. AM Net blog entry.
- New characters confirmed so far for The King Of Fighters XIII: Mai Shiranui, King, Yuri Sakazaki, K', Takuma Sakazaki, Vice, Hwa Jai, and Maxima. The game is expected to location test through many locations in May. Location test and event schedule. Official site. Developer blog. Intro movie.
- Blazblue Continuum Shift's current release date in the US for the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles is marked on most retailers' websites at July 27th, priced at $39.99. Console version trailer.
- The High Voltage Software developed Wii fighter Tournament Of Legends is due to be published by Sega on July 6th, 2010 for a mere 29.95 MSRP. The game looks to be a solid and fun mythical fighter after its somewhat odd name change and blood / gore reduction it received in February and could prove to be one of the better fighters on the system. Official site. New trailer.
- It's over a month old now, but the April Fools' Day trailer for Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown is still pretty funny.
- Check out the trailer for Pixel Kombat, a "Hadokumentary" that chronicles some of the world's best fighting game players and their communities from France to Japan and to the USA from 2004 to 2009. Official blog.
- If you haven't friended them / become a fan yet, Tougeki Super Battle Opera has a Facebook page now! The official page lists live streamed events to be broadcasted through Famitsu's streaming service and the preliminary event schedule leading up to the main event, which will determine the true top players who have qualified from all over the world. This year's lineup is particularly amazing: Street Fighter 4 ( possibly might change to arcade Super Street Fighter 4 ), Virtua Fighter 5R ver.C, Tekken 6 Bloodline Rebellion, Blazblue Continuum Shift, The King Of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match, Arcana Heart 3, Guilty Gear XX Accent Core, Sengoku Basara X, Street Fighter III 3rd Strike, Super Street Fighter II X Grandmaster Challenge, Melty Blood Actress Again Current Code and The King Of Fighters XIII.
- Team Spooky is doing some amazing featurettes on the best arcades to visit in Kansai for fighters, including this beast of an article about Magical Space in Kobe written by Heartnana. Also worth a read is Heartnana's blog if you're looking for a superb firsthand account of the Japanese arcade experience.
- David Cabrera's latest post on Subatomic Brainfreeze talks about this month's Arcadia magazine / DVD combo and the culture surrounding it.
- Really good, informative post here on Hongfire about a semi-new ( few months old now ) doujin Fighter Maker project called Wonderful World with mechanics similar to that of Blazblue and Melty Blood. Links to Japanese wiki, where to get the game, how to set it up, etc. are all included there.
- If you're looking for a new joystick for your next gen fighting game needs and have a few hundred dollars to blow, you may consider the Hori Real Arcade Pro Premium VLX fighting stick, coming to the US market with more information and preorders to be available circa this year's E3 event. Be sure to keep an eye on Hori USA's Web Portal / Store.
- Tekken 6's presence in Major League Gaming's current season is a fierce one, as evidenced by their livestream from their stop in Orlando. If you missed the competition, be sure and click here to catch all the archived footage from the event.
- Several old school PS1 era fighters have recently been added to the Japanese PSN store: namely, Zero Divide 2 and Koutetsu Reiki: Steeldom ( which is more in the Virtual On style of gameplay than a traditional fighter ).
