The Spot 081701

			Poll: Which of these GameSpot editors do you want to take over The Spot next week? Gerald Miguel Ryan

Just as promised, you get to choose who will perform my duties as the bearer of answers while I'm at Space World next week. So choose well, because who knows what evil lurks behind these seemingly harmless faces. Just to make sure these guys aren't slacking, flood the inbox with your questions. And make sure they're tough. We wouldn't want to let the winner off easy now, would we?

Submit a question or comment.

08/17/2001

To the Point

THQ wrestling games suck. Will EA make another WCW game?

-Steven

Eep! I'd say you're in the minority on that one, my friend. But regardless of who's right or wrong, EA will not be making another WCW game. THQ holds the WWF license, and the WCW was just absorbed by the sports entertainment conglomerate. If you want to play as your favorite WCW grapplers, you're going to have to buy a THQ game. You might want to check out Legends of Wrestling, which will feature all the old WWF heads, such as Rowdy Roddy Piper, Junk Yard Dog, Hulk Hogan, Jimmy "Super Fly" Snuka, and Andre the Giant. Now, if they could just slide Abdullah the Butcher in there. Or Sheik Adnon LKC...

Bite of the Apple?

Hi. I have a question about the GameCube's design because it kinda looks like an Apple Power Mac G4 Cube. I heard my cousin say that Nintendo copied The G4 Cube. Is this true?

-LJ

It is kind of interesting, considering the processor inside the Cube is similar to Apple's G3 line of computers. And it wouldn't surprise me if Nintendo got some inspiration from the design.

More Xbox Rumors

I was recently watching TechLive. They said that Microsoft has found a flaw in the Xbox's Intel motherboard. Do you know anything about this? If it's true, how long will Xbox be delayed for? By the way, thanks for a great Web site that doesn't @#$% monkey $%^&.

-ftanoos

If you had read the entire report, you'd know it stated that it would not cause a delay for the launch of the Xbox. A report that was released later stated that the worst-case scenario would be fewer units at launch. In any case, I think these analysts are grabbing at straws.

No Capcom vs. SNK 2?

I noticed in an update that Capcom is going to be releasing Capcom vs. SNK 2 for both the PS2 and the Dreamcast in Japan. But they have said that it's coming out only in the US on the PS2. It seems to me that they would want to release it on the Dreamcast in the US instead of Japan, since the system sold better here (despite Sega discontinuing the hardware). Also, I remember Capcom coming out with stuff in Japan on the Sega Saturn for a while, after everyone else had for the most part quit, so it would seem reasonable.

Will it be coming out on the US Dreamcast or will I have to *shudder* buy a PS2?

Sincerely,

-Kevin D.

Well, I wouldn't hold my breath for the Dreamcast version. There's already a ton of great fighters on the DC, and I can somewhat understand Capcom's decision not to release it here. Plus, SNK has a much bigger following in Japan. Look on the bright side. At least it's coming to the PS2.

Welcome to the Future

Hello, I received a Dreamcast for Christmas. I got a host of AAA Dreamcast [games]. Resident Evil: CV, Shenmue, Jet Grind Radio, etc. Well, I recently went to a friend's house, and he was playing NFL 2K1. This was amazing. People were talking trash (in text). He was playing the game with a complete stranger. And it was better than any of the games just listed. Well, my question is how can I sign up for SegaNet? Please tell me so I can do it right away. How much does it cost? Can I get on anytime?
Thanks,
-JoJo

Welcome to world of wonderment that is online console gaming. Neat, ain't it? If you want to get online with a Dreamcast, you can use most ISPs except AOL. If you want to use Sega as an ISP, you're out of luck. It recently folded up its ISP operations.

PS2 Durability

Greetings,

First, I'd like to let you know that I've been visiting your site for the last few years. I've come to rely on your site for my daily video game news fix.

My question is about the PS2 hardware. I've been waiting to purchase a PS2 for a couple of reasons. The first reason was the rumored price drop that was supposed to happen around the release of the GameCube and Xbox. A couple of issues ago, you dispelled the rumor and stated the reasons why it won't happen.

The price drop is not the main reason I have been waiting to buy a PS2, however (although I wouldn't mind a cheaper price). About a month or two back, your site and a bunch of the gaming mags stated that the PS2 was going to get a better DVD drive, and with the better drive would come better DVD playback. Now, DVD playback isn't the main importance here, it's the better drive. You see, I'm one of those lucky owners that bought one of the early PlayStations, and although I'm not an uber gamer, I do play my PS on a daily basis. My PlayStation is so sad that it has come to the point where my PS will only play games while sitting on its side, and it will not play all of the PlayStation games correctly (especially some of the newer ones). I have friends that bought PlayStations at the same time I did, and they had the same problems, but I also have friends that bought theirs later (pre-PS One) that don't have any of these problems. Most sources say that the later PlayStations were built with better components.

Will this be the same with the PS2? I really don't want to shell out a chunk of cash only to have another system crap out on me two to three years down the line. Any insight about this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a lot!

Michael Sylvian

I have to admit that we get a lot of letters from people who are having technical difficulties with their PlayStation 2s. Mine has worked fine, and all of our units in the office are still humming right along, despite extensive abuse. I don't know anyone who bought a PlayStation at launch and hasn't replaced it by now. I've had two myself. Disc-based systems are inherently more prone to wearing out than a cartridge-based system, due to all the moving parts. There's been talk of swapping out the .25 micron processor currently found in the PS2 for a .18 micron processor of equal power, but I don't remember Sony talking about changing the drive. If you're set on getting a PS2, there's no reason not to get one now, unless you're strapped for cash.

Ret Ro

I love your site, and keep up the good work. I think you're the best gaming site on the Internet. My question is will Nintendo still release Raven Blade for the GameCube later down the line? I was really anticipating this game and I heard they stopped making it to make Metroid Prime as good as possible (it better be great).

-Darielle

Ah, Retro Studios. There is no middle ground for Retro Studios. Either people will love them for making a great Metroid game or loathe them for placing a blemish on the franchise. While it was far too early to tell if Raven Blade would turn out good, it's always a shame when any game gets canceled. It nullifies a lot of sleepless nights on the part of the development team, which is usually the last to blame when projects get canned. I doubt we'll ever see Raven Blade, but I wouldn't be surprised if some of the art that has already been completed for it shows up in Retro's later games.

Boot Camp

Shane,
During PS2's start-up sequence, there are some blocks displayed. There are varying types: clear, solid, and some that are longer. I've noticed that the block's position and type will change depending on what is saved on the memory card and also if there is no memory card inserted during start-up.
Could you tell us what these different blocks specifically represent? Does anyone know for sure? Thanks for your insight. -Russell Martin

It's just a subtle visual cue to let you know if your memory card is inserted. Nothing more.

Sega on the Xbox

Do you think Half-Life, Devil May Cry, and Run Like Hell will come out on the Xbox? Also, Sega stated that it will release only 11 games on it. Does this mean only 11games forever or only on its launch or for a short while? Do you also know if Sega will make any other games instead of sports? The only ones I know of so far are Jet Set Radio Future, Gun Valkyrie, and House of the Dead 3.

-Harry

I would say that Half-Life and Devil May Cry are safe bets, but Run Like Hell--er RLH--will likely only come to the Xbox if it's a hit on the PlayStation 2. Sega announced 11 games as its commitment to Microsoft. I would think that the company will see how the console is doing before pledging any further support. But an 11-game commitment is pretty darn good, if you ask me. Not to mention, most of Sega's most-sought-after games are coming to the Xbox.

Eidos, Where Art Thou?

OK, I have only one question: Will the two upcoming Legacy of Kain games (Soul Reaver 2 and Blood Omen 2) be coming to the GameCube? Apart from Metal Gear Solid 2, these two games are the only good reason I have to buy a PS2. If they aren't coming to GameCube, then I may have to go ahead and buy a
PS2 (maybe).

-Krytyn

I would say it's highly unlikely, but you never know. They definitely won't be coming in the near future. That much I can tell you. It's kind of interesting that Eidos has yet to announce GameCube support. Why could that be?

Stranger in a Strange Land

Sup, Shane? Love the site. How come you don't show some love to modifications for games like Half-Life? All you've got is action Half-Life, which is a great game but already outdated. I know you guys have a lot of work to be done considering how large the Web site is, but some of these mods are fun. One mod has been compared to Max Payne. Many say Payne's a little better, but some actually like that specific mod. Since The Spot is in the video games section, will the PS2 Half-Life have the potential for mods?

Gracias.

-Anonymous

Man, you're at the wrong place for Half-Life mods. You should be hanging on the PC section of our site. We have much more than just the base Half-Life game covered. Just type the word "half" into our search engine and have a look-see. You will not be able to mod the PS2 version of Half-Life because it's not compatible with the HDD.

De nada.

Something Else Sucks

You have the most pathetic search engine in the whole world. It always gives me wrong info. For instance, I typed "history of Dreamcast" and it gave me the "history of PS2" and your previous editions of The Spot. So please improve your search engine.

-Shushant

Our search engine actually works very well once you realize that you need to type just one word into it. Also, we don't have a History of Dreamcast feature. So in this case, it actually worked pretty well. At least it didn't make up features that we really don't have on the site.

PC Games on the Xbox

I have seen screenshots of Microsoft's Dungeon Siege for the PC and they look simply amazing, but I haven't been able to find out whether they will release it for the Xbox also. I was wondering if you could shed some light on the topic. Thanx.

-Cez

Well, it certainly seems like a no-brainer, doesn't it? The catch is that Microsoft is trying like the dickens to keep people from thinking the Xbox is a PC. So it's definitely not a given. But nothing has been announced officially.

Help From Our Friends

On the Wednesday edition of The Spot, I noticed that one poor gamer thought he would have a problem setting up his PS2 on his old TV. I always like to help a gamer in need, so here's a tip: If you have the RFU adapter for the PSOne, it will also work for the PS2. By the way, what does RFU stand for, anyway? Well, keep up the good work on the site. Later.

-Mike

Thanks for the tip, Mike. RFU stands for radio frequency unit. But don't ask me what it has to do with a device that flips the signal from broadcast to a video game machine.

Street on the Cube

NBA Street was great for the PS2. Is it going to be as good for the GameCube? Are there going to be a lot of differences? How come you don't have NBA Street on your list of games for the GameCube? Thanks.

-Afro74Thunder

Sorry about the omission, but we just added it to the site. According to EA Sports Big, NBA Street on the GameCube will be advanced in every way when compared with the PS2 version. We'll just have to wait and see.

M U L8

I have a question regarding emulation. I am a huge fan of 1980s and early '90s video games and I have a Game Boy Advance that I bought specifically for Namco Museum and Pac-Man Collection. I'm sure you guys have heard of the computer program MAME (Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) that runs literally thousands of old-school games. What interests me is that the files needed to run these games (ROMS) are usually very small in size (10Kb-200Kb) and the technology involved in running these games graphically and all seems to be easily handled by the GBA, as proven by Namco Museum and Pac-Man Collection. I was wondering if you have any information or know anyone that is developing some type of way to port all those classic games to a system like the GBA with some sort of interface that would plug into the cartridge slot or by some other means. I mean, we all know that technically, it's illegal to sell such a device, but wouldn't it be amazing to be able to have access to the thousands of old games that are out there from the past on a system like GBA? Clearly, someone with enough knowledge and inspiration could develop some means of getting MAME portable. Also, I am curious to know if Namco or any other company plans to release any more classic/retro game paks like Namco Museum. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a Donkey Kong collection or something! I just know that there is a huge audience out there, drooling at the mouth for retro arcade games, and what system better to port them to than the GBA? Maybe it's wishful thinking, but any info you have would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

-Jim Collins

What is this emulation thing you speak of? ROMs? What are they? Wasn't MAME a movie about a talking pig? You mentioned you would like to see old games in a portable form, so you should definitely click 2715659here .

Eggman

Hey Shane,

I have a little question. When will Nintendo begin preorders for the GameCube? When I went to Software Etc. the other day, the guy said that Nintendo had made them stop taking preorders and to "check back later." When will "later" be? Another thing: When are ads and displays going to start for the Cube? They have only about two months left...

Keep up the great work,

-Cody Morelock

I'll put it to you this way: I criticized Nintendo for not showing more GameCube stuff leading up to E3, and I ended up with egg on my face. I'm not about to do it again.

PS'ed Off

Is anyone else mad at Sony? I really find it strange when I read all this stuff about Sony being numero uno. They owe it completely to third-party developers and they don't even treat them right. Plus they make this system, give developers no time to work on the titles, so it takes a year for us to get any good games and make it notoriously hard to program for. [Then they] screw over stores by not giving them the number of units promised and even then become biased against some for taking preorders for rival systems. All they seem to be doing is raking in dough and killing my favorite franchises. Come on, people! Give blessings to Square, Namco, or other companies that you bought that thing for, but not Sony. I have much more to say, but that's a little bit of my ranting anyway. So the question remains, am I the only guy mad at Sony? -Bill Watkins

Nice Spanglish. The only people as angry as you are the ones who have to develop games for the most challenging platform because it's currently the most popular. I'm not quite sure how Sony has killed your favorite franchises, though. If those games didn't come out for the PS2, they may not have been released at all.

Persona 3?

Hi. Persona 2: Eternal Punishment sounds like a really cool game, but I can't find it hardly anywhere. Well, I can find it on eBay, but it's expensive. So, I was wondering...are there going to be any sequels to this awesome game released?

-Julie

Have you checked out Persona 2: Innocent Sin? It's equally good. Haven't been able to find Eternal Punishment, eh? Why not try clicking here? Sorry, but there's still no word on the next Persona game.

Phantasy Star Collection

With Sega releasing games on multiple platforms now, is there any chance they will rerelease Phantasy Star 1 through 4 in the US on any system? It'd be great to see Phantasy Star Collection hit the states.

-Zhao Tsu

Can you say Game Boy Advance? The Sega Smash Pack for the Dreamcast includes Phantasy Star 2, so that's a start, at least.

We Hate Everything

I have been checking out this site for a few months and while looking through the game reviews, I noticed a disturbing trend. It seems that the reviews for Dreamcast games are usually quite a bit lower than the reader reviews for the same game. With the PS2, on the other hand, the exact opposite holds true, with the reviewer's score higher than the reader reviews. This would seem to indicate that perhaps the reviews are biased in favor of the PS2 and not objective. If this were an isolated incident, it would be no big deal; however, if you go through many of the previous reviews, you will notice that what I have said is almost always the case.

Laterz,

-Kerry King

Not to start dropping stereotypes or anything, but Sega fans tend to be a bit more rabid than the casual player who makes up the PS2 user base. So I would say that the reader reviews for Dreamcast games might be a bit too forgiving. But at the same time, I was raked over the coals for my reviews of ZOE and Dark Cloud (both of which I still stand by), so reader reviews for PS2 games can be just as inflated when compared with our standards. The moral of this story is that no one is ever happy unless we give every game a 10. Besides, how can we hate the Dreamcast when it's already been proven that we hate the PS2, Xbox, and GameCube? That would mean that we don't even like video games.

Rally Racing, PS2 Style

Hi, I would like to start off by saying that your site is the best out there. I love your site. Now on to my question. Do you know if we're ever going to see a rally game for the PS2 here in the US? I read your UK sister site, and they had a preview of a really cool rally game. So can you please tell me if we will ever see this game here in the States? I think the game is called World Rally Championship, but I'm not sure.

Thanx.

-Luis Hernandez

Check out Paris-Dakar Rally . It seems to be fairly hard-core. Gran Turismo 3 doesn't have a bad rally mode either.

Don't Trust the Xbox

I have just a few responses of my own to letters that appeared on Wednesday.

Before sending your PS2 off at your own expense, try returning it to a large store like Wal-Mart. It helps if you lie to them, "I got it for my birthday, and it doesn't work right and they can't find the receipt but they said it came from here," etc. Most of the time, the old ladies up at customer service will just tell you to get another one. Hell, they'll exchange all kinds of things without a receipt. And don't worry, they return it to Sony for a refund, so you really aren't stealing money from them.

As for the upcoming system wars (I know you journalists love this stuff because of all the opinions you guys get to churn out...I do too), it seems that the GameCube has a much greater chance of taking Japan than the Xbox. And I wouldn't be surprised if the Xbox died because of lack of Japanese support. After all, it is almost half the market. As for me, I don't trust the Xbox, so until I play one and like it and feel like I won't get discontinued or anything, I'll wait.

-Anonymous

Please note that we do not condone this sort of capitalistic retail manipulation, but thanks for the underhanded tip, anyway. I don't trust the Xbox, either. Watch your back--Microsoft will tell you that the green jewel is without function, but I know better. I wouldn't trust the Xbox as far as I could throw it.

So that's it for this week. If you want to get all the Space World information first, work that refresh button like a madman between 8 and 9pm PST next Wednesday. Hope you dig our coverage, and I'll speak with you all again when I get back. Audi.

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