Kevin asks, What is the legal status of modifying the region restrictions on a

DVD player (the Q) and importing such a modified player into the US?

Rick Says: Currently, none. There is nothing illegal about

modifying hardware to play software that you've legally purchased on all ends. You'll only

violate your warranty.

This might change later, but currently, no one is really going to care.

Billy Says: If you look on a GameCube or GBA Game from Japan, it'll say for

Japan only. Also note, if you saw the Japan Experience Video, you'll notice while I'm

picking up my GameCube, the sales man shows me a warning saying for use in Japan only.

Basically, they don't want you to import games. Is it illegal...eh, I don't believe so.

It's not hard to get a mod-chip for most DVD players out there to make them region free.

As far as their legality, I'm not sure...but if the government were that worried about

them, you wouldn't be able to import them.

Jonathan Says: You own your GameCube,

right? Then what say does the government have in the matter? If you wanna screw around in

there and mess with some wires, it's none of their business. Maybe if a modded GameCube

could play pirated software and you were using it for that purpose, but that's not the

case. You bought the import game, you bought the GameCube, you didn't steal anything. End

of story.

Mike H. Says: You can do whatever you want to your own personal property... in

this context, that is. As for importing modified equipment, as long as they're not falsely

advertising or misrepresenting information in any way, that's legal as well I imagine.

An example of something that IS illegal: A distributor overclocking a computer processor

(a modification in its own right), advertising the computer at the faster speed, and

selling it for a higher price.

Anthony asks, What's the deal with Batman: Dark Tomorrow from Kemco? I was at E3

last May, and it looked damn good, then we get stuck with the Batman that is out now, and

there has not been one damn word on this game since E3. Do you have any information on it?

Daniel Says: I wish I did. We have it

scheduled as a March release, but I really don't believe that. I'm beginning to wonder if

it will even see release, but maybe someone else knows something I don't.

Mike O. Says: Like me, perhaps? :)

The game has been pushed back to the end of the year. Surprise surprise. Personally, I'm

looking forward to a sequel to Universal Studios. So I can burn it. With fire. Until it

melts.

I WANT THOSE 5 HOURS OF MY LIFE BACK, KEMCO!

Jonathan Says: The word from Kemco PR is

that Batman: Dark Tomorrow has been pushed all the way back to November 2002, a full year

after its original date. Obviously the game has either been undergone a massive overhaul

of some kind. Hopefully we'll have more new info soon, including the first screens.

Rise Says: Perhaps they've gotten ambitious and decided that a truly great game

with the Batman license would sell droves more than a mediocre one. Or maybe the game was

so horrible it wasn't feasible to release it in that state. With a third party, you never

know.

Max Says: Kemco’s Batman Dark Tomorrow looked more realistic than the

animated style of Batman Vengeance and certainly looked promising last E3. Supposedly DC

Comics ordered some changes, which may have held things up a bit though I suspect there

was more to it than that.

I don’t know what you mean when you say we “get stuck” with Batman:

Vengeance? I thought it was a pretty good game; Ubi Soft did a really commendable job in

bringing the caped crusader to life. I’m anxious to see how Dark Tomorrow measures

up.

Alex asks, Is the US going to get Fire Emblem or not? Advance Wars did awesome in

the US and FE would probably do better. Do you think it may go to the US? Is there any

chance at all? Hasn't the US had better total GBA sales? Come on Nintendo!

Mike S. Says: Nothing is official yet. But it's

looking like it could happen. With Roy and Marth in Smash Bros. Melee, that could help

build some interest for Fire Emblem in the US.

Rize Says: For me the crack-addictive nature of Advance Wars is what's sold

me on Fire Emblem (not the mere appearance of the two in SSBM). Hopefully Nintendo gets

things in gear and localizes the title for the U.S. It looks like a pretty tough import

due to the use of quite a bit of Japanese text.

Jonathan Says: I personally doubt it. NOA's

choices on what and what not to release have never made much sense to me. We can get

Animal Forest Plus but not Sin & Punishment? Advance Wars but not Kuru Kuru Kururin?

Gimme a break. Not that I'm complaining about AF+ or AW, but there seems to be no rhyme or

reason to NOA's releases, and I doubt the success of any particularly Japanese game would

do anything to convince them to release another very Japanese game. I realize there are

many factors in deciding whether to localize and release a game, but Nintendo has proven

time and time again that they'll do whatever they want and don't really care what their

hardcore fans think. Perhaps unfortunately, that formula seems to work sufficiently well

for them, so I doubt it'll change anytime soon.

Dragona Says: Let's just say I disagree with you, j00ny. Heh. Big time.

Aussie Ben Says: I don't know...Nintendo seems to have a really bizarre attitude

when it comes to RPGs. Zeldas will make it out fine as they're an established franchise

and more action-oriented. But stick in a menu to select commands, and all of a sudden it's

inappropriate for the western gamer to play. That seems to be the attitude, anyway. (I'm

just surprised Golden Sun made it out.) Although the inclusion of Roy and Marth in SSBM

seems to be a positive indication, I wouldn't get your hopes up until an English Fire

Emblem screen is shown.

Max Says: It’s a goddam crime Sin & Punishment or Kuru Kuru Kururin

never came out in North America. Of course, the same could be said of being denied the

Wars and Fire Emblem series so long! With Nintendo bringing Advance Wars and vocally

considering Animal Leader, Doshin the Giant and Fire Emblem, things seem to be looking up.

A lot of us here at PGC are crossing our fingers for Fire Emblem to come to North America.

Luckily, there are many good indications that it might actually happen.

First off is the inclusion of Roy & Marth in SSBM, which formerly introduces North

America to the franchise for the first time. They’re two of the tougher characters in

the game to boot—who wouldn’t be interested in playing a RPG-Strategy game

featuring Roy?

The success of Advance Wars also helps. Wars is another long running Intelligent Systems

series that had never left Japan until Advance Wars, a surprise hit for Nintendo. Taking

into account that the I.S. Advance Wars crew doing development, there’s good reason

for NOA to take a chance again.

The April issue of Nintendo Power features half a page dedicated to Roy & Marth,

history on the Fire Emblem series and translations for their victory taunts in SSBM. No

announcements or anything, but it’s a good sign right?

More concrete is a

href="http://www.gaming-age.com/cgi-bin/news/news.pl?y=2002&m=3&nid=12-47.db">recent

Gaming-Age news item on the subject, with translated comments from the FE team taken

from NCL’s page. They said as long as there is interest, they would be happy to have

the game be translated for other parts of the world.

Finally, Louie the Cat

href="http://www.planetgamecube.com/rumors.cfm?action=profile&id=10">ran a rumor

ages ago indicating that Fire Emblem was being considered for release outside of Japan.

This was before Advance Wars was released, or anyone knew about Marth & Roy in Melee.

Since that rumor, we’ve done our best to follow up on it. Every time we've dispatched

PGC spies to check on the matter, they return saying things remain positive - yet

uncertain. I suppose we’ll find out one way or another come E3.

LilItAliAnBC asks, Here's the question on many peoples minds. After the current

president of Nintendo, Yamauchi, retires, what are the possible repercussions as far as

developers go? Will this have a small impact? A large one? Will developers become unsure

of Nintendo's stability and leave? Perhaps old developers that held some sort of grudge

will hesitantly, albeit surely, make their way back to Nintendo? Maybe it will have no

impact what so ever?

Mike O. Says: Good

question. While there is no sure fire way of telling what will happen in the overall

scheme of things, I think it's a safe bet to say there will be some sort of impact. There

was once speculation that Mr. Iwata would be a candidate to take over for Yamauchi, and

while that's still a possibility, it's more and more looking like there will won't be one

president of Nintendo, but more of a board of highly ranked members (such as Iwata). If

you would have asked me who might have been the successor 6 months ago, I'd have guessed

Arakawa (recently retired head of NOA).

As for the developer aspect? Hard to say, now. This recent FundQ/Square deal, which was

seemingly spear headed by Mr. Yamauchi (I'm not going to pretend I'm not white and say

Yamauchi san) himself. As I doubt Yamauchi was TOO involved with American/Canadian

developers and publishers like EA and Activision, I doubt anything will change in that

focus, but as for Japanese support? Again, this is all guessing, but I'd say no. I don't

think Tecmo is going to run up to Nintendo the second Yamauchi leaves, begging to put DOA4

on the system or anything, and I don't see HAL "defecting" to become a Sony 2nd

party. The biggest change, in my mind, will be the way Nintendo views games. Instead of

having one man making large business decisions which effect pretty much everything, there

will (maybe) be a board of people ranging from business men to designers, and so forth,

thus affecting the viewpoint when it comes to important decisions- business and otherwise.

Perhaps the GameCube's successor will incorporate some sort of (obviously advanced) cart

technology instead of a disc media because of the different outlooks or mindsets

pertaining to the multiple members instead of the sole "mother brain"?

In the end, who knows? Good question though.

Jonathan Says: I doubt any developers would

leave. If anything, a couple won't be intimidated anymore and will be more willing to deal

with Nintendo. I have to say though, I'm very surprised with Yamauchi's involvement with

this Square deal...it seems very out of character for him. Maybe he's not such an evil

robot after all!

Rize Says: Using a combination of

brilliance, intuition, intimidation, luck and who knows what else, Yamauchi changed

Nintendo from a small manufacturer of Hanafuda playing cards into a world-wide video game

giant. With Nintendo's now giant size comes a certain amount of shock resistance. The

immediate impact of his leaving probably won't have a great effect. However, who knows how

differently things could turn out if he continued to orchestrate Nintendo's actions. I

suppose we'll see a gradual move from the more esoteric practices that Yamuachi was known

for into things that make a little more sense to us (though they may not necessarily be

better in the long run). To use a tired expression, only time will tell. Honestly.

Dragona Says: Erm, NCL's internal dealings

will not change at all. In fact, Yamauchi-san has been preparing the company for his

eventual retirement for a few years now: The Board of Directors will take his place as the

supreme power at Nintendo. In fact, they've already outvoted him on a few issues.

I don't think there'll be many problems, though part of me dreads the day the old Tengu

steps down... He is an innately gifted businessman, to say the least.

Aussie Ben Says: I think that Yamauchi's eventual retirement will affect something.

I mean, every change affects something, no matter how small. Cause and effect and all

that, right? Perhaps as said, it may be the small loss (or gain) of a developer or staff

member. Or it may be something as big as Nintendo suddenly becoming extremely gung-ho

about Internet gaming - no doubt they're already experimenting with it, but perhaps a

First Party online game will be setup sooner. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Billy Says: I don't believe developers or publishers will think Nintendo is

unstable. It is interesting to see all the people that have left this year alone, but I

don't believe the company will make any radical changes.

Max Says: Like the rest of the gang, I doubt there will be any noticeable impact

on Nintendo following Yamauchi’s retirement and expect a smooth transfer of power.

Miyamoto has joked that some of the development teams might have a bit more creative

freedom in their work (Yamauchi overlooks everything), though this probably

won’t be too dramatic in reality.

Many have underestimated Yamauchi or misunderstood his actions. However, he is one of the

most successful businessmen in the world and has led Nintendo to great successes, time and

again due to his strong leadership.

To fully appreciate Yamauchi’s leadership and Nintendo itself, I highly recommend

David Sheff’s Game Over. I find it appropriate that no one individual will be

replacing him in the role of president. Hiroshi Yamauchi is truly one of a kind.

A concerned Nintendo fan rants, I am a 24 year old gamer and Nintendo fan

since the NES days. I've been there through Nintendo's meteoric rise to the top, and stuck

with them through the "good, but bad" N64 days too. For the last 2 years I've

been obsessed with the coming of the GameCube and Nintendo's "Return To Glory"

and now that it's here, I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed so far.

As you know, the last generation really hurt Nintendo more than it helped. Sure the N64

was a success in it's own right, but sticking with the expensive, dated, small cartridge

format proved to be a HUGE mistake for Nintendo. This made long-time developers jump ship

and make the PlayStation the system of choice globally and the "cool" one with

the teens and adults. And it outsold N64 by a wide margin. This is also where Nintendo's

"kiddy" image really took over as well. Even you guys have to admit that the N64

absolutely sucked for Sports, Fighting and RPG's which are 3 of the genres that

"mature" gamers like the best.

But with GameCube, all of these faults were supposed to change. "It's a disc

based system now so everyone will come back." That's what I thought anyway, but it's

still not the case. Where is NHL 2002? NASCAR Thunder, F1 2002? NBA Live 2002? Why doesn't

Konami make Metal Gear Solid or Silent Hill for the GameCube? Why do we get Sonic and not

Shenmue from Sega? Why do we get Home Run King instead of the Simulation Baseball game

World Series Baseball 2K2 from Sega? Are Camelot or Enix doing any RPG's because the GCN's

RPG line-up looks pretty average right now with a few ports and Rune.

Getting Resident Evil as a GCN exclusive was a really great move for Nintendo, but we

still need more games like that to convince a broader range of gamers out there (who

aren't interested in Mario or "Celda") that the GCN is the system to have. We

get Star Wars Rouge Leader (a sequel to a N64 game) and the Xbox gets Star Wars Knights of

the Old Republic! It's an RPG set in the Star Wars Universe! Tell me that won't move some

big black boxes off the shelves next fall!

Nintendo is very confident that Mario, Zelda, Metroid, StarFox Adventures, Eternal

Darkness and Resident Evil (all exclusives), combined with some big name 3rd party stuff

like Turok, Soul Caliber 2 and Mortal Kombat Deadly Alliance will be the winning formula

next Christmas. Don't get me wrong I too believe that these games are all Million Sellers

and system sellers. But Microsoft isn't stupid. You don't get to be the biggest company in

the world by being stupid. They have a large host of games lined up to take on Nintendo's

"Big Guns" next Christmas as well.

4 out of 5 of my friends bought an Xbox. Their reasons? DVD, CD player, most

powerful graphics (although I still haven't seen evidence of this in the games yet), best

sound, longer controller cords, hard drive (no need for memory cards), broadband adapter,

The promise of online gaming, saving your own music to the HD and putting it in your games

etc, etc. And you know what? They didn't care that it was more money because they all

think it was worth it. For them, it has games that appeal to them more. Sure they think

Metroid has potential, but they always say, "It won't be as good as Halo

though." They like Silent Hill 2, Wreckless, Project Gotham Racing, WWF RAW, Dead or

Alive 3 and the list goes on. There are no chubby Italian plumbers or spiky-haired blue

hedgehogs on their most wanted lists.

Nintendo has a HUGE opportunity here with the GameCube. And NO I'm not talking about the

Game Boy Advance - GameCube Connection or Pokemon. I'm talking about having the most

BALANCED game library in history. Think about it. They already have the "kiddy"

market locked up, no contest there. Why not try to get every "mature" 3rd party

game the other guys have on their system? Games like Grand Theft Auto 3, Legacy of Kain,

Max Payne, Terminator: Dawn of Fate and more? How can that do anything besides widen their

system's appeal? They should get all the Sports games they can. FULL EA Sports support,

not half support. FULL Sega Sports support, not half support. They should pay Enix

whatever it takes to make Dragon Warrior 8 exclusive to GCN. We all know what kind of an

impact that would have on Japanese GCN system sales don't we? They should start including

Demo Discs in Nintendo Power. The other guys all do it and I'll bet if they asked their

readers if they'd like demo discs in their magazine, the response would be 99% in favor of

them.

I was shocked to read that Ken Lobb apparently resigned and went to work for

Microsoft. First Howard Lincoln, then Minoru Arakawa, Peter Main, and now Ken Lobb? What's

happening to my favorite game company? Nintendo sticking to their ancient ways of keeping

way to tight lipped about big name titles when they should be going out of their way to

hype them. Pissing off major gaming publications such as EGM with their lack of

cooperation in providing them with something to fill their pages with besides vaporware

and speculation.

I just don't know anymore. I can see Nintendo finishing third in the console race and

being content with that because the GBA and Pokemon's sales combined with the GCN's will

put them in first place overall profit wise. This is what scares me. What happened to the

Nintendo of old? Where's that monopolistic, competitive spirit that used to strike fear in

the hearts of their competition? Why doesn't Nintendo care about being the # 1 home

console anymore? Let's face it, the real battle is for second place because no one will

catch PS2. But it doesn't seem like Nintendo even cares to be second place now!

I've had serious thoughts about selling my GameCube and buying an Xbox. And trust me, if a

loyal Nintendo fan like me (I bought the Virtual Boy!) who has stuck by them through thick

and thin through all of the jokes and insults is contemplating going to the competition,

there's something wrong that needs to be addressed ASAP or Nintendo could be in serious

trouble.

Billy Says: You've named a lot of games

that haven't been released on GameCube (or X-box), and have been mainly PS2 ports.

Sometimes you need to bite the bullet and get more than one system. If you want to play

everything you'll have to own all the systems. That's the bottom line. Also the reason why

I collapsed and bought a PS2. There were just enough games that justified the purchase. I

just wish Nyko or someone would release an adapter so I can use the GC controller on other

systems.

Your friends' reasoning for purchasing an X-box is a bit off. The sound and graphics

aren't any better on the X-box, and the only game that's worth it on the system is Halo.

GameCube has just as much chance for getting online. The only way X-box is online now is a

hack program from GameSpy, and even that's shoddy. Even so, I'll wait to get Halo on the

PC, because a PC game, especially a FPS is 99% of the time better on a PC. It was

originally designed as an online game with around 20+ people playing at once.

The games are coming. Be patient. Every system gets their exclusives. When Zelda, Metroid,

ED, SFA, etc are out, you're friends will be wishing they had a GameCube as well.

Mike O. Says: Phew, where to start? This is one

long rant.

First off, the sports games that you listed are all EA games (except for NASCAR Thunder

maybe, did EA do Rumble?), and EA is supporting the GameCube. They released sequels to

their two biggest/best PS2 games in SSX Tricky and Madden 2002, and they'll continually

support the system. They're not supporting it as much as the Xbox, but Capcom isn't

supporting the Xbox as much as the GameCube. See how that can work? The problem is, when

you focus on specific games, it all becomes an argument of semantics. I personally own all

3 systems, but if I only owned an Xbox, I could just as easily be asking, "Where's my

Home Run King, I don't want a sequel to one of the most asstacular baseball series this

side of my ass?". Why doesn't Konami make MGS2 or SH2 for the GameCube? Because

Konami seemingly views the GameCube as a machine majorly targeted towards a young user

base. But why isn't Capcom releasing any Resident Evil games, Cas Ra, Glass Rose, etc on

the Xbox? See? Semantics. It ALL boils down to personal preference, and with THREE

>very competitive< companies having released their consoles within 2 years of each

other, you're just going to have to realize that there will not be one console that has

all of the games you want. Oh, and I'm pretty sure there are some... non 3rd-parties

working on GameCube RPG's as we speak.

Do we really need more games like RE? I don't think so. Right now, there are exclusive

games like Metroid, Eternal Darkness, Resident Evil(s), Die Hard, Perfect Dark Zero and so

forth that could convince many older gamers to buy the system. Other (non exclusive)

titles like Soul Calibur 2, Mortal Kombat 5, yadda yadda could do the same. But listen to

me when I say this, as it will ring true in many circumstances within your

theories/complaints; Casual gamers are incredibly stubborn 99% of the time. There will

always be a moment where a Sega die hard will be convinced to buy a PS2 because of Virtua

Fighter 4, or a Nintendo die hard will buy a PS2 because of Grand Theft Auto 3. But if a

casual gamer, or (possibly ignorant) hardcore fanboys (such as your friends?) have a

mindset that System A is for little kiddies, and System B will increase their penis size,

regardless of gender, that person will buy System B even if it has a swastika pasted on

the front of it. What I'm saying is, if getting exclusive Final Fantasy and Resident Evil

games aren't enough to convince someone the system isn't for kids... well... there's

pretty much no hope for that said person.

"We get Star Wars Rouge Leader (a sequel to a N64 game) and the Xbox gets Star

Wars Knights of the Old Republic! It's an RPG set in the Star Wars Universe! Tell me that

won't move some big black boxes off the shelves next fall!"

Replace Rogue Leader with "Obi Wan" and Knights of the Old Republic with

"Rogue Leader", and you'll have the exact same situation where GameCube owners

came on top when it came to Star Wars games. Semantics and preferences.

I'm certainly not going to argue that Microsoft is stupid, because they've done a great

job in North America since E3, but they have made their share of mistakes. Paying to get

Jet Set Radio Future exclusive is one of them. They're not exactly taking off in Japan

either (the defect problem didn't help). This isn't to say Nintendo hasn't made their

share of mistakes with the GameCube, because they have. I'm just saying that the biggest

company in the world is not necessarily the best company when it comes to video games. As

for the Xbox's large host of games for this Christmas...uh... what are they exactly? What

is going to contend with Mario, Resident Evil, Metroid, and a Zelda disc? Shenmue 2? Heh.

Granted there are going to be many titles announced at E3 that could fill the void (though

the same goes for the 2 other systems), and a game doesn't necessarily have to be part of

a series to become successful (see Halo), but right now I think the GameCube has the

advantage when it comes to big Fall 2002 titles.

Who cares what your friends think? If you don't think the Xbox has the most powerful

graphics, then the Xbox does not have the most powerful graphics. If one of my friends

decides to come out of the closet, does that mean I have to start making out with other

guys? No. Here's an old fashioned PRO TIP for you: If your friends list off "longer

controller cords" as a reason for buying one system over another, chances are they're

trying to convince you why you should think said system is better. And in the end, yes

they will save money by not having to buy memory cards, or a DVD player, but it ALL comes

down to the games. That's all.

"For them, it has games that appeal to them more. Sure they think Metroid has

potential, but they always say, "It won't be as good as Halo though." They like

Silent Hill 2, Wreckless, Project Gotham Racing, WWF RAW, Dead or Alive 3 and the list

goes on. There are no chubby Italian plumbers or spiky-haired blue hedgehogs on their most

wanted lists."

Great news! You've got fanboys! That Metroid statement pretty much sums it up, don't

you think? If they would rather play WWF RAW than Mario Sunshine, tell them about

Wrestlemania X8, which I can ASSURE YOU will be the better wrestling game. You know what

will happen when you tell them about X8? They'll change the subject to DOA3. Or Wreckless.

You see, they're trying to justify their system to YOU. Why? Because they want to think

they have the best system. I used to be this way as well, until I bought a Dreamcast, and

then subsequently a PS2 and Xbox. You see, it honestly does not matter if your friends

think DOA3 is better than Smash Brothers if you think the opposite. It doesn't. Be happy

PLAYING your games.

Though I COMPLETELY agree with you with the demo disc proposition (it really does

boggle the mind as to why that hasn't happened yet), you just can't go around buying all

of the biggest series like DQ and GTA. You can't. I'm not going to pretend to be a

business scholar, and neither should you. It would be great if one system had the best

games, and the best price, and the best hardware, but that's just not going to happen. I

understand that you'd like all of the big exclusives on the GameCube, but it's simply not

going to happen. It's not a feasible reality, at least not for the next 4 years.

Finishing first overall in profits IS finishing #1. Would you rather sell 3 apples for

$1 an apple, or 2 apples at $2 an apple? The number of consoles sold honestly means

nothing when looking purely at the view of profits made from said consoles. You'd be

surprised how little money retailers and manufacturers make on hardware sales.

Just to clarify, only Lobb left for Microsoft. Lincoln retired ages ago, and Arakawa

and Main both RETIRED because, well, they felt it was time. They aren't jumping ship like

Mr. Lobb, they're simply retiring. If you see a rat run across the floor of a ship, it

doesn't mean the ship is sinking.

If you want my advice, here it is. Buy an Xbox. And a PS2. That is the ONLY way you

will be content with overall game selection, and it makes all of this fretting, guessing,

and worrying oh so meaningless. You know what's going to happen when Knights of the Old

Republic comes out? I'm going to buy it and... (wait for it)... enjoy it. I'm not going to

write a letter to IGN (for a small fee of only $5.95!) asking why Nintendo didn't secure

it as an exclusive. I'm going to enjoy it. And when Mario Sunshine is released, I'm not

going to second guess my Xbox purchase.

You have no idea how perfect the freedom of playing Halo co op is, then switching to

Pikmin, and then topping it off with some Grand Theft Auto 3. So either get the other two

systems, or continue worrying and second guessing as much as you want. Either way, your

friends aren't going to shut up, Nintendo's not going to secure every game ever exclusive,

you will always feel a secret, foreboding urge to get an Xbox or a PS2. That's just the

way life is.

Jonathan Says: Well, I won't go through item by item like Orlando, but I'll say

this: many of the problems you cited with GameCube, while arguably true, will be solved by

this holiday season. As much problem as Microsoft had in convincing companies they had a

real shot in the industry, Nintendo has had even more trouble showing that they've learned

some lessons and have made publishing on GameCube far more profitable than it was on N64.

From everything I can tell, Nintendo has succeeded in proving that fact to many

third-parties, and right now they're working on GameCube when they really weren't this

time last year. I think you'll find that most all of the EA Sports titles will hit

GameCube this year, as will all Sega Sports titles. RPGs are coming slowly but

surely...hell, that's the case with all systems. It's just not a genre that is available

at launch with any consistent quality.

To specifically address the Star Wars RPG comment: first, it's unfair to compare that

game to Rogue Leader (because the real Xbox parallel to that game is Obi-Wan, which is

horrible); second, Xbox mainly got it and will get other online RPGs simply because it's

online right out of the box. It remains to be seen how many Xbox users will take advantage

of that capability, but I can hardly blame LucasArts or any other publisher for putting

their online games on Xbox rather than GameCube or even PS2.

Fighting games should be quite good by the end of the year...Bloody Roar: Primal Fury

looks like it's gonna be pretty decent, and then we'll have Soul Calibur 2 and the

recently announced Capcom vs. SNK soon too.

I guess the gist of what I'm saying is that it's easy to look down on the GameCube in

the general, vague ways you use (not enough sports games, etc.), but in specific terms,

the system is already producing a much more balanced library than N64 had, and that will

be the case even more so as the system establishes itself. Right now I'm quite happy with

my GameCube (thanks to a very cool import game and another in the pipeline), and I expect

to be ecstatic with it later this year. If you don't feel that way, sell yours and buy

whatever you want. My personal recommendation, however, is to wait it out just a bit

longer for E3 and decide after all the holiday games are announced. Right now we're in the

annual pre-E3 blues, a very slow period both for news and releases, and a great many Xbox

and even PS2 owners are probably feeling much like you are about their systems. February

through April just isn't an extremely happy time for a gamer with only one system, and it

never will be.

Rize Says: I rarely ever sell games back to a store or anyone. In fact, the only

games I can remember selling back are PlayStation 1 and 2 games (3 in all, they just

sucked bad). You usually don't get enough money back for games when you sell them, and I

generally like to replay old games after about five years or ten years. That's when you'll

really regret selling them. I agree with Mike here. Save a little extra dough up and get

all three systems. Yes it would be nice if Nintendo made the extra effort and came out

unquestionably on top. However, consider this depressing scenario. Nintendo goes after

mature "image" and fails. Meanwhile they ruin their family friendly image. Now

what do they have? Nothing? GBA? I'm not going to second-guess Nintendo's decisions that

much. I'm just thankful that their method of remaining popular and successful is to

release the best games in the world rather than achieve the highest sales numbers.

TYP Says: Rize is right: you really should save your old games (as long as they

were initially amusing). The SNES and NES kept me quite busy during the months before the

GameCube launch, and I'm sure the GCN will do the same some day. Another tip: the GBA

makes a great home console. My GBA is usually played under my own roof. There are so many

quality games on the system now that I'm SURE you haven't checked them all out. A few good

paks should hold you over at least a month or two. By then you'll see some more GameCube

action!

Aussie Ben Says: Righto, you're a 24 year old gamer who's been following

Nintendo for years, but your friends are telling you that the Xbox is the way the go, and

you're beginning to feel a bit the same way. Well then - buy an Xbox! Nobody is stopping

you! If you believe that the GameCube doesn't cater to your current gaming tastes, then

for God's sake buy one that does! As Mike said, it's all about the games in the end, and

if the system you've got doesn't have the games you want, then you'd better find the one

that does - otherwise you'll have a system that's going to be a mighty attractive

paperweight (or perhaps in the case of the Xbox, an unattractive doorstop).

I personally couldn't care less what anyone thought of my game purchasing decisions. (This

is essential when you go to the counter to buy any game with 'Pokemon' in the title.

Ladies and gentlemen, I bought Pokemon Puzzle League AND Pokemon Puzzle Challenge. Why? I

have no idea. I also bought Pokemon Snap because I get sadistic pleasure from assaulting

Pikachu with stink-balls and apples.) People I know (and these are Nintendo FANS, mind)

have warned me from buying Luigi's Mansion. But I don't give a damn. I'm going to buy it,

and enjoy it. And then when I want to play it again at some point in my life, I'm going to

dig it up and play it again.

Who cares what other people think? Are they buying the system for you? If you buy the

GameCube and you like it then too bad for those who don't. They'll miss out on great games

like Smash Bros. Melee, StarFox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet, Eternal Darkness and others.

If you buy the Xbox and it has the games you like, then you'll know you made the right

choice. (Of course, you could buy multiple systems if that's an option.)

Max Says: Who cares what system your friends have? Hey, if they all have X-Boxes

– AWESOME. Then you won’t necessarily have to buy one to game it up on one.

It’s always been my opinion that the more video games, the better. Even if you

can’t afford all the systems, I highly recommend you go out and play them. Luckily, I

have pals with both PS2s and X-Boxes. Games like GTA3, Halo and Virtual Fighter 4 are

really worth going out of your way to check out. I certainly might pick up one of the

other systems at some point (like when they’re a bit cheaper), but there are still

LOADS of GBA & GC games I feel are worth purchasing. Plus, I’m still playing many

of the games I already have.

As a longtime Nintendo fan, you should know the Big N has delivered time and

again—even when it looked grim. At the dawn of the 16-bit era, Sega had a head start,

yet it was the SNES that pulled ahead in the end. Despite all of its problems, the N64 was

a successful system. The GameCube and GBA are both quite successful, with excellent

support and more to come.

The GameCube answers many of the problems the N64 had and then some. The GameCube has more

games & better support than the N64 did at this time. Granted, the N64 wasn’t

facing the heavy competition that Cube is, but I’m confident 2002 will be a winner

for Nintendo. With announcements like the Triforce Arcade board and Square’s return,

things are getting better all the time too. Who knows what will happen at E3?

I wouldn’t advise selling your Cube, though by all means save up and invest in

another console if you really want to play everything. It’s good to broaden your

horizons. For awhile, I grew tired of N64 and resorted to MAME, PSX and eventually a

Dreamcast for gaming entertainment. Awhile (and a few classic releases) later, I was back

to N64 non-stop. I never thought for a minute of selling any of my old systems. Hell,

there are many games on SNES and NES still worth fun playing today.