KING OF FIGHTERS XIII RUMOURED TO BE RELEASED THIS SPRING

Its been a while since I've updated here but I've been busy contributing to other blogs and other things in life. Just a quick update for today as I will update with a couple of reviews over the next week.

Apparently, KOF XIII will be released this Spring in Japanese arcades. The news had been reported on Kotaku where you can read the full post HERE.

Nice to see that they aren't waiting too long to bring an update of the previous entry out. KOF XII recieved hefty amounts of criticism but looked really nice and played fairly well. Here's hoping that they build on the already existing framework to make KOF XIII as good as previous entries in the series.

VIRTUA FIGHTER 5 FINAL SHOWDOWN COMING TO ARCADES

Just a short post today but SEGA are bringing the latest updated version of Virtua Fighter 5 to arcades soon and have released a trailer to promote. In a few words, it looks ace!

Have a check of it below:

NEW SUPER STREET FIGHTER IV TRAILER SHOWS 3 NEW CHARACTERS

Just a quick update here but Capcom have released a new trailer for Super Street Fighter 4 that includes 3 characters chosen from Street Fighter III: Third Strike. Hope most people are happy with the choices Capcom have made and I'm particularly fond of Dudley's 'Dempsey roll' inspired super. Check it out!

SONIC UNLEASHED REVIEW

SEGA's own adopted mascot has been around for almost 20 years. A long amount of time to be around and remain popular in the world of games, SEGA's Sonic Team continue to develop new Sonic gaems to maintain the character's popularity and bring him to new audiences of gameplayers. However, the last few entries in the Sonic franchise have been lacklustre to say the least. Does Sonic Unleashed repair any of the slack from the recent additions to SEGA's favourite mascot's library or does it contribute to Sonic's descent into mediocrity? Read on to find out.

BARRY BURTON AND REBECCA CHAMBERS TO APPEAR IN RESIDENT EVIL 5 GOLD EDITION

This is somewhat old news but will no doubt please fans of the early Resident Evil games. In the upcoming re-release and DLC packs for Resident Evil 5 the remaining to characters that have been announced for the mode referred to as Mercenaries Reunion have been announced as Barry Burton and Rebecca Chambers.

Not only does this bring Resi 5 full circle with all the main players from Resi 1 making an appearance but you can once again refer to 'almost becoming a Jill sandwich!' to your heart's content!

Vids of Barry and Rebecca below:

80 JOBS TO POSSIBLY BE CUT AT THE COMPANY GAME

Slightly off from what I'd normally cover but I feel this is important for those who reside in the UK at least. In a recent post on GamesIndustry.biz high street retailer GAME have announced they are intedning to cut 80 jobs from their workforce in an internal shift of departments from their York office to their Basingstoke one.

It is never a good sign when any company cuts jobs and if you know anyone who works in an industry such as this it shows that no position is truly safe. All the best goes to those who will be affected.

Read the full article HERE (GamesIndustry.biz website)

SEGA SAMMY MAKES A PROFIT

Reading on GamesIndustry.biz recently it appears that Sega Sammy have made a profit in their most recent financial review compared to the last one.

Although the article goes on to state that sales of computer-related goods are down, it's still nice to see the company in the black and it can only mean more fanancial support for SEGA's upcoming game projects (more Valkyria Chronicles please!)

Read the full article HERE (GamesIndustry.biz website)

AKIRA YAMAOKA JOINS GAME DEVELOPER GRASSHOPPER

As the title suggests, long-serving composer at former employer Konami, Akira Yamaoka, has been reported to join Grasshopper Manufacture.

What this means for the games he will work on remains to be seen. All I can say is that it makes me excited for what is to come from the gentleman that gave gamers the erie soundtracks of many entries in the Silent Hill series.

Read the full article HERE (originally posted on Kotaku)

PLAYSTATION 3 TO CATCH UP ON X-BOX 360

I recent news post from GamesIndustry.biz talks of the Playstation 3 catching up with sales of the X-Box 360 (as in number of consoles sold). It's an interesting read and shows how SONY are picking up pace with the PS3 and although they may have lsot some ground in the past they are in a better position now than 12 months ago.

Frankly speaking, the sales figures probably matter more to the companies then to the gamers but it's nice to see that the PS3 is selling well. After all, better to have a competitive market than a monopolised one, right?

Read the full article HERE

Tatsunoko VS Capcom released, review to come soon

So I picked the above title up on Friday as it has just been released in the UK. Not a bad little mover, possibly the most hectic of Capcom's VS series of games yet and definitely best played with a classic pad. Once I get an adaptor for my PS2 pad I'll put a review up with my impressions of the game.

Pick it up if you're interested and make sure you've got a classic pad as well!

GOD OF WAR COLLECTION REVIEW

In a change to regular updates, here's a guest review from an old friend of mine, the one and only Seb (who's own blog you can visit here: Seb's blog. Anyway, the lad has been kind enough to do a review of the God of War Collection that was released in the USA not too long ago and here it is for your reading pleasure. Check it out!