If you are a loyal Forum reader this story isn't news to you. Interesting how a story brews in our forum section and ends up somewhere else as a news story! Well I think it's worth of noting as well. :) A bunch of the notable Dolphin companies have purchased specific domain names. There's a lot of good stuff here, but some is speculation. But Velvet Dark does have a ring to it....check it.

We've got a hot scoop for you this weekend, and you won't be left dissatisfied. The same fellow(see above source) who brought you the Super PLAY interview with Shigeru Miyamoto, is bringing you this. Ever heard of Velvet Dark, Thunder Rally, or Nintendo Online?

There's been quite a few domain names registered that should more than wet your appetite. For those of you who don't know, a domain name is an address, like www.gamefusion.com. As you'll see below, all the rumors and speculation seem to be fairly correct to date.

Rare Ltd.

Apparently, Rare, has registered a domain by the name of www.velvetdark.com It is not yet known what this domain name is for, but we think it's pretty apparent that it is a sequel to Perfect Dark. Velvet Dark was just registered recently, and as we know that Rare has just finished up several games, it's very likely they've already begun work on "Velvet Dark". Perfect Dark was named after it's "Perfect" main character, Joanna Dark, who had "unprecedented achievements in training". It can thus be deduced that "Velvet" has something to do with a new codename, with Joanna most likely taking the lead again. In related news, Rare has also registered the newly rumored Dinosaur Planet(www.dinosaurplanet.com) which is said to be a very beautiful N64 game graphically(a la Zelda: The Ocarina of Time), with hours of voice samples.

These two domain names differ in that they are registered by Rare itself, and not Nintendo. For example, www.perfectdark.com, www.banjo-tooie.com, those are registered by Nintendo, and not Rare. This can be taken as evidence of Rare's expanding freedom to develop, and publish what they want. Rare will still continue making games for Nintendo, obviously, but they'll just do it more their way. I think Conker's Bad Fur Day is pretty solid evidence of that.

Retro Studios

Next up is one of the hottest new development studios, Retro Studios, which Nintendo has a personal investment in. Check out the two specials on Retro in the Editor Forum for more information.

Lets cut to the chase. As I speculated "The Posh Stylings of Retro Studios", it appears that Retro has a racing game in the works. And it just may be Nintendo's answer to Gran Turismo. The name of that game you ask? Thunder Rally.

Retro has registered a domain by the name of www.thunderrally.com. We think it's pretty clear by now that Retro is out to give Nintendo it's "killer" racing game. Have another look at all these cars.

So, there's most definitely a racing game in store for us, but what about that mysterious RPG? Rather, what about that mysterious *Online* RPG Retro was rumored to be working on? Well, we're not sure of the name of the game, but Retro has registered www.nintendoonline.com. I don't think it's any coincidence that Retro was rumored to be working on an online RPG, not to mention that Nintendo seems to have graciously handed over this precious domain name to Retro Studios. Clearly a highly prized developer. Whatever Retro has in store for this "Nintendo Online", I'm sure it's big.

On a side note, Retro has also registered www.retroworld.net. This may be their own private website, or it could be their very own version of Battle.net where players meet up to play Retro Games online with other players. Can you imagine playing Thunder Rally online, racing people from across the country(or globe), and even having championships and rankings? I think you can... It's possible Retroworld.net would be the place to see your current rankings.

Factor 5

Well, not surprisingly, Factor 5 has registered www.thornado.com and www.turrican.com. Well, we knew about those games, and it's still highly likely Thornado is coming to Dolphin. Interestingly, however, Factor 5 has registered a mysterious domain by the name of www.katakis.com.

Katakis was an R-Type style game, and one of Factor 5's first and greatest hits. Why they have registered the domain is unclear, as the game was made in 1988, but just as they updated Turrican(but had to call it Thornado due to licensing issues), it is possibly they may update Katakis. Katakis was one of the first 50 FPS(frames per second) shooting games on the Amiga. Hopefully Factor 5 is interested in updating this, as it was one of their first great classics.