TheBlackCat asks: I heard Zoids: Legacy for the GBA and Zoids: Battle Legends for the Gamecube are coming out soon. However, nobody seems to have any info on these games and release dates I found conflict with one another. Do you guys know anything about them, even just release dates? Could they be the same as any of the Japanese Zoids games? I realize these games might be pretty bad, but I am still interested in finding out about them. Thanks in advance for your help.

Daniel says: Not sure if they're the same games as in Japan or new ones, but they're slated to come out in March.

Aussie Ben says: On a Zoids related note, did you see those Zoids toys on display at the Tokyo Game Show a while back? They were remote control Zoids toys, but they used your Game Boy Advance as the remote controller. And you could make the Zoids battle each other, just like in the shows! TAKE THAT, FOUR LEGGED LION THING! No, YOU TAKE THAT, OTHER FOUR LEGGED LION THING!

Sorry, but sometimes I just get carried away. Oh man, if I was younger, I'd be in kid heaven. Although, I'd be too poor to get any of these cool toys. Catch 22, eh?

Jordan asks: Tetrisphere on N64 was and still is one of my favorite puzzle games ever created. It's really too bad it didn't get more recognition - the provided a fresh and awesome take on the now-stale tetris rehashes released every year. Give me regular gameboy tetris over any of these! Anyway, is there any chance at all of a tetrisphere sequel or tetrisphere-like game being released on any of the systems - including gamecube - any time? Thanks!

Jonny says: For a game sort of in the same vein, check out ZooCube, probably in the bargain bin by now. It's nowhere near as good or infinitely playable as Tetris (or Tetrisphere), but it's pretty fun and definitely different from the usual clones. As for Tetrisphere, it's one of my favorites as well, and I'd love a follow-up. THQ seems to be the main company licensed to make Tetris games right now, and judging from Tetris Worlds, they aren't interested in doing anything new (or even playable) with the series. So we may be waiting a while.

Steven says: If there was going to be a sequel, this would be the time to make it. Considering the power of the systems that are out, you could easily make a Tetrisphere-type game. We all want one, it's just a matter of whether or not THQ will consider it.

Then again, they couldn't even make a bloody Tetris game.

Daniel says: But hey you can get Tetris Worlds free with an Xbox!.........

(Leans back and listens to the crickets.)

Aussie Ben says: Ah, Tetrisphere. One of the best N64 games I've ever played. And not only that, it had a kickarse soundtrack thanks to Neil Voss, too. I loved the "GAMEBOY" code with the alien head as the "A" that gave you extra hidden tracks. Man, that game was something special. I nearly beat all of the Vs. mode, but I could never beat that last CPU Vs. It was just so satisfying to watch all of the pieces just explode when you got a massive chain. Oh man, I miss Tetrisphere. I'd love a sequel.

Excuse me, I'm off to dig out my Nintendo 64.

Jason asks: I remember sometime around June there was a rumor that Eternal Darkness was going to be made into an actual movie. Is this going to happen or not? Have you heard anything at all? From the complexity of the rumor, it sounded like it was going to happen but I haven't heard anything since. Thanks for the info.

Jonny says: I think it was optioned for a movie. But just like books, only a small percentage of those optioned ever become movies. I think ED has a good chance though, especially if there is a sequel in the works. Hell, if they'll do House of the Dead and Crazy Taxi, surely Eternal Darkness can get approval.

Steven says: Well, they did have those Eternal Darkness Films a while ago, but as for a feature-length film, there hasn't been anything about it as of yet. We would have been all over it if that were the case. To be honest, though, I don't think we'll ever seen it come to the silver screen, because Nintendo probably wouldn't let something like that get screwed over by Hollywood. After all, the Metroid movie got canned, and we all know how great Super Mario Bros. the movie was.

TYP says: Hey! The Mario movie had that great little bob-omb, so it wasn't 100% bad! Seriously, though, like Windy said, I don't think we'll ever see another Nintendo franchise movie. Nintendo doesn't seem to exactly trust Hollywood, and we all know Nintendo would never use internal resources to make a full length movie.

Aussie Ben says: Movie? Why make it into a movie? I've only just started playing the game (although I bought it months ago - incredibly sinful of me, I know) and it seems to have a great story on its own. Making games into movies seems to ruin what enjoyment you'll get out of them. And to those who own a GameCube and like playing games, but for some reason don't have Eternal Darkness...please buy it. Please? Truly some incredible stuff. I'm certainly looking forward to whatever Silicon Knights has up their sleeves.

And as for that Mario Bros. movie - the only things that I remember about it were Dennis Hopper being Bowser and turning into jelly at some point, Yoshi being damned ugly, and Goombas being incredibly tall guys in coats with tiny heads. Just like in the games!!!

Ha ha. I think being scarred by the movie as a child has made me block out the more traumatic memories of it.

Ty says: I just bought the Mario movie for six bucks. Now I just need to collect that one movie with Raul Julia in the role that killed him.

John Doe asks: I've been keeping an eye on Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life and you guys say it comes out January 15 but Walmart says their going to have it December 1. Which date is true?

Mike S. says: It was supposed to come out later this year but recently the date was changed. The game is currently scheduled to come out some time around Janurary or Feburary 2004.

Jonny says: If you want a copy, I suggest you make a pre-order. Natsume games are never distributed in large quantities, so it can be hard to find them if you don't plan ahead.

Daniel says: Yeah, I'm having a wacky time trying to hunt down CIMA (which is also by Natsume). It seems that it was originally slated to come out on the 4th, then it was the 6th. Now it's either on the 12th or the 19th depending on who you ask. I just want the freaking game dangit!

Necridslayer asks: When's the next Super Smash Brothers game going to come out? Whats with the slowdown of the production?

Ty says: It would be a hot launch game for the next system, that's for sure. Or maybe a nice arcade game, what with that Triforce arcade hardware.

TYP says: Sadly, we may not see another Super Smash Bros. game for some time. When Masahiro Sakurai left HAL Laboratory, he expressed concern over the future of the SSB franchise. He made no specific comments, but his talk of companies (like Nintendo) not giving creators enough freedom with their projects suggests he wanted to create another Smash Bros. game, and Nintendo refused. I guess Nintendo has a hunger for Kirby games not seen since the SNES was king.

I for one agree with Nintendo: one Smash Bros. a system is a smart move. Nintendo shouldn't canabalize its own market with a game like Super Smash Bros. Super DX Hardcore One. Of course, I really want a new Smash Bros. game too, but I'm willing to wait for a new generation of hardware.

Jonny says: I tend to agree with TYP here. SSB and Melee are both so deep and replayable that they can last for years without getting old. It is perhaps unfortunate that Melee came out so early in the GameCube's life, because we'll have to wait longer for the next system and the next SSB game for it. But I can understand Nintendo not wanting to pound their only fighting game into the ground with constantly rehashed versions a la Street Fighter. They certainly aren't dragging their feet due to poor sales.

Tom asks: What has happened to Planet Harriers, it was rumored, it was half confirmed, and then disapeared?

What has happened to -

Virtua Fighter Quest

Glass Rose

Game Zero

Code 6

Skies of Arcadia sequel

Tales of Phantasia sequel

That end of October Nintendo press conference that was meant to be held in japan?

Robert says: Wow, there's a lot of mysterious stuff right there. I can help out with a few though:

1) Virtua Fighter Quest is still in development for the GC - Sega-AM2's Hiroshi Kataoka confirmed that much in a recent issue of Dorimaga. My guess is that we won't see anything on it until E3 2004.

2) Glass Rose (Glass no Bara) has been shifted to PS2, and was all set to be released 'Fall 2003' last time I heard.

3) Game Zero is still cooking over at Zoonami. It's completely shrouded in mystery, but I'm pretty confident we'll learn more at E3 2004. Interesting, but totally useless, fact: Zoonami is actually located just on the other side of town from me. Maybe I can go through their rubbish or something for clues ;-)

Zosha says: The "Tales of Phantasia sequel" became Tales of Symphonia, probably the best third party offering to date on the GC. Skies of Arcadia 2 has had no official announcements as of yet. The producers of the game had hinted that a sequel may be in the works, depending on how the title performed, so don't hold your breath...

Jonny says: Yeah, Skies of Arcadia Legends sold so badly, I doubt Sega is too eager to make another one. It's a shame too, because Legends is a great game. (You can pick it up now for ten bucks at most retailers.) Tales of Symphonia is still set to be released in America sometime in 2004, and it should be a huge title.

TYP says: Sega has only its North American advertising department (and lack of funds) to blame. Casual gamers need to know a game exists before they will read the game's positive reviews and consider buying it! If Nintendo ever becomes serious about getting more RPGs on the GameCube or its successor, it should commission Sega WoW to make a sequel and head the game's advertising campaign. Sadly, the chances of this happening are slim :-(

The Planet Harrier rumor was pure speculation, but logically it made sense at the time. It's still possible, but Amusement Vision is most likely working on another Monkey Ball game instead.

Adam asks: Hi, I've been wondering if NHL Hitz Pro has most of the same features that it had before. With a different development team, I'm wondering if the minigames have been saved. The actual gameplay was great in 2003, the franchise especially, but the minigames were a nice compliment. King of the rink made Hitz the best party game last year for me, and I'm wondering if those are in Hitz Pro.I've been looking all around for information on whether its still there or if its gone, and I haven't found any answers yet. Anyways, nice review for the game!

Steven says: Actually, it's the same development team. As we pointed out in our preview, when Electronic Arts bought out Blackbox, the core team members who did the first two Hitz games didn't want any part of it, so they left to start their own development house, Next Level Games (the developers of Hitz Pro). Therefore, the gameplay is exactly the same as it was in the first two games, just with more players on the ice. I pointed that out in my review.

However, there really isn't anything else in the game. The franchise mode is weak, there aren't any mini-games, and there isn't anything to unlock. This is most likely because Midway wanted to drive home the fact that this game is more realistic than anything they've done before, and in a way, they've done that. However, in the process, they've stripped Hitz Pro of the features that made Hitz 20-03 so great.

Basically, if you have 20-03 and love it, keep loving it. Hopefully they're put back in all the stuff they took out this year for next game, and make it one hell of a hockey game in the process.

Bill asks: Animal Crossing 2 is gonna be awesome! I was thinking that it could be Nintendo's flagship first-party online title. Think about it: Massive metropolitan cities that become huge centers of commerce and a huge online nation. A society would be born in an unprecedented online gathering that would undoubtedly attract millions. It would be SWEET!!! What do you think the odds of this happening are?!?

Jonny says: Well, the first Animal Crossing had its own online mode of sorts, with the trading password system. The game didn't actually link up to the Internet, but Nintendo knew the passwords would get traded around on message boards (like our own). I'm not sure if Animal Crossing 2 will be one of Nintendo's first real online games or not, but I would expect it to expand on the trading feature and give players more ways to interact with each other, even across large distances. Nintendo hasn't said anything about the game in a while though, so we don't really know its status.