With the launch of BMX XXX only weeks away, AKA Acclaim, a division of Acclaim Entertainment, today announced it has released a second trailer (includes some mature content) for the game. "Millions of consumers flocked to our site to see for themselves why this game was being talked about on national television and in the pages of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNN.com," said Ben Fischbach, Senior Brand Manager with Acclaim. "Due to their overwhelming response and support of our product, we've created a second trailer that will be even more irreverent and reflective of the game's over-the-top satirical humor." The first action sports video game designed specifically for audiences over the age of 17, BMX XXX is one of the most talked about titles for this holiday season. Combining outrageous Hollywood humor and characters, beautiful women from New York's famous Scores club, incredible arcade action and a dynamic soundtrack from today's top recording artists, BMX XXX will deliver an unparalleled interactive entertainment experience.

Eidos Interactive today announced that Hitman 2: Silent Assassin is currently being developed by IO Interactive for a Spring 2003 release on Nintendo GameCube. Since its release on PlayStation 2, PC and Xbox in October this year, the game has enjoyed worldwide success having shipped in excess of one million units. Mike McGarvey, CEO of Eidos comments, "GameCube owners worldwide are crying out for more mature content and Hitman 2: Silent Assassin fits the bill perfectly. The game has taken the world by storm and we are confident that this success will be repeated on the GameCube platform." Janos Flösser, managing director of IO Interactive says: "With an installed base of millions, there is a massive potential audience for a game like Hitman 2: Silent Assassin. We are very impressed with the GameCube and feel that Hitman 2 and the Cube is a perfect match." 

In Hitman 2: Silent Assassin you must enter the mind of a genetically engineered assassin Codename 47, whose deadly efficiency is now needed more than ever. Lured back into a global ring of deception, you must kill not only to make a living, but to continue living. This time it's not just business. It's personal. The game's storyline begins in a Sicilian monastery. Codename 47 has been attempting to distance himself from his violent past, however the local criminal underworld discover his true identity and blackmail him into returning to his trade. Caught in the middle of a ring of deception, Codename 47 soon discovers that he has been manipulated and the hunter must now watch his back, as he has become the hunted.

Nintendo recently came under fire by the European Commission for distribution practices in Europe through 1998. This week's developments were best summarized by a European newswire release by Agence France-Presse... "The European Commission Wednesday fined Japan's Nintendo €149 million ($146.5 million) for trying to rig distribution of its computer consoles and games in Europe during the 1990s. Nintendo and seven European distributors were fined a total of 167.8 million euros, the fifth-largest ever imposed by the European Union's executive arm for cartel practices. "Every year, millions of European families spend large amounts of money on video games," Competition Commissioner Mario Monti said. "They have the right to buy the games and consoles at the lowest price the market can possibly offer and we will not tolerate collusive behavior intended to keep prices artificially high," he said. 

Nintendo accepted it had been wrong but vowed to appeal at the Luxembourg-based European Court of First Instance over the "surprising" level of the fine. "Nintendo accepts the finding that, up to 1998, its distribution practices did not comply with EU competition rules," Nintendo Europe said in a statement. "Nintendo has rectified the relevant aspects of its distribution in Europe and has instigated a thorough and far-reaching compliance program that enables the free flow of product across Europe," it said. The Japanese company prevented "parallel imports" of consoles and games from cheaper markets such as Britain from entering other EU countries, the European Commission concluded after a seven-year investigation. "It's been found that Nintendo and its distributors have been involved in this illicit behavior for most of the '90s, between '91 and '98," commission spokeswoman Amelia Torres said. The fines were the fourth largest imposed by the commission against a single company and the fifth largest overall, she said."

Nintendo of America this week releases its Broadband Adapter and Modem Adapter that will make it possible to use Nintendo GameCube as a platform for Internet-enhanced video game play. The online adapters launch in North America only weeks after a successful Japan launch where swift sales left many store shelves empty. Domestically, a few retailers who already received early shipments of the product have sold out. The adapters will enable GameCube players to easily connect through dial-up, cable modem or DSL. Both the Broadband Adapter and Modem Adapter carry a suggested retail price of $34.95 each. "Nintendo's point of differentiation is our strategy of enabling online access without dictating the venue," explains Peter MacDougall, executive vice president, sales and marketing, Nintendo of America Inc. "We're making it simple and comfortable for consumers by giving them total control and allowing them to use their own ISP with no console access charges." Online games supported by third-party companies include Activision and Sega, among others. The first online game to hit stores is Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II, from Sega, which launched in North America October 29. For more information, click over to Nintendo's new online site.

Nintendo and Starlight Children's Foundation today commemorate their 12-year partnership, plus the millions of smiles generated from the Fun Center program, with the launch of all-new Fun Centers, state-of-the-art mobile entertainment units designed...

ATI today announced the benchmark shipment of 12 million Flipper chips for Nintendo GameCube. The ATI-designed and NEC-manufactured Flipper is GameCube's core graphics processor. Nintendo's best-selling game console enabling software developers...

In an effort to attract older gamers and boost holiday sales of Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo will launch a Metroid Prime GameCube bundle promotion in North America in time for the Thanksgiving week retail period. Unlike the pre-assembled Super Mario...

Nintendo America Inc. has gone platinum, hosting a "platinum-level" Hollywood bash to introduce top celebrities to its wide-ranging holiday video game line-up and new limited-edition platinum Nintendo GameCube system. Last night, stars streamed down...

Nintendo has finally released official details regarding the Metroid Prime to Metroid Fusion linkup. According to Nintendo, "If you've completed Metroid Fusion, you can unlock the original NES version of Metroid in Metroid Prime. Just connect the two systems and you're ready to play. You can even save your game data directly to a Nintendo GameCube Memory Card. After completing Metroid Prime and connecting the two games, you'll be able to play through the game wearing Samus's Fusion Suit from Metroid Fusion."

Nintendo redefines "T & A" in an ambitious new marketing effort aimed at generating buzz around Metroid Prime in the college community. From now until November 7th, Nintendo will be accepting entries in the Metroid Prime Talent and Adventure Contest...

Nintendo today unveiled the Metroid Prime commercial, soon to be displayed in its entirety on television and the silver screen. Filmed in Sydney and directed by Alex Proyas, the commercial ties together live-action, CGI, and real gameplay sequences. Click to download the large or small version.  

MoSys and NEC today announced that NEC has shipped more than 25 million units of the 96-Mbit high-density 1T-SRAM memory chips in one year after the launch of the Nintendo GameCube, which uses these very high-performance custom chips as its main system memory. Perrin Kaplan, vice president, marketing & corporate affairs at Nintendo of America said "We are very pleased with the successful partnership we have with both NEC and MoSys, allowing us to leverage their technologies to produce a unique gaming experience with Nintendo GameCube for our customers." 

Takashi Okuda, with NEC Corporation commented, "NEC is delighted to continue its long-term relationship with Nintendo with the achievement of this significant production milestone for the Nintendo GameCube." Mark-Eric Jones, vice president and general manager of intellectual property at MoSys, added, "MoSys is proud of its contribution to the success of Nintendo GameCube. These new NEC agreements build on the production success to broaden our relationship into additional processes and geometries." The Nintendo GameCube includes 192 Mbits of very high performance, low-latency 1T-SRAM memory. 25 million chips would thus have the capacity to power 12.5 million GameCubes.

Last week, Nintendo announced a decidedly more mature marketing effort this holiday season geared towards older gamers. Today, Nintendo sent out a press release hyping GameCube games geared towards teen and mature gamers. Peter MacDougall, Exec...

According to Nintendo of Japan's site, The Legend of Zelda for Nintendo GameCube may finally have an official title, The Legend of Zelda: Kaze no Takuto - literally translating to The Legend of Zelda: Tact of the Wind or possibly The Legend of Zelda: Wand of the Wind. Our friend Ikachii informs us that 'takuto' in this context would reference a conductor's wand or baton, meaning that 'tokuto' may be an item that controls the wind or perhaps suggesting that the wind is like a symphony in the game. The title lends itself to one of the most important gameplay elements in The Legend of Zelda on GameCube, the wind. According to a recent interview with Eiji Aonuma, Director of Kaze no Takuto, "This time the key word is wind. Wind is blowing throughout the world. In the raft scene, the direction of wind is shown, and we put in elements, such as the direction that Link's hat and flags are blowing, that will make the players be aware of the wind."

You can trim your holiday shopping list and get great savings on Nintendo's hottest wares with the Super Mario Sunshine Bundle Pak. Don't be the gift-giver who gives the "cool toy' without the batteries." Nintendo's got the perfect gift Pak in store for you...

With the launch of Sega's Phantasy Star Online Version 1 & 2 just weeks away, many have become concerned that a GameCube keyboard may not be released in time for the game's October 29th release. ASCII, the manufacturer of a GameCube keyboard currently available in Japan, has announced no plans to bring the peripheral to the States. The editors of IGN Cube recently contacted Sega for answers and was told, "Sega no longer produces peripherals and is not planning on distributing the keyboard in the U.S. ourselves. However, we are working with third-parties and doing everything we can to make sure that a keyboard will be available in U.S. when the game launches in the U.S. this fall."

In support of its strongest lineup ever of video games designed for older players, Nintendo of America today announced it will spend $140 million in marketing during the holiday season, a 25-percent hike over last year. Much of the funds will target teen...

Today, we find a gem in the bag of coal that Nintendo released yesterday. Nintendo, which currently controls 20% of the home console market in North America, stated they are confident in expanding that market share to 33% by the end of 2002. 

Nintendo Co. Ltd. today revised downward their earnings estimates for the first half and full fiscal year. Largely because of the continued strength of the Japanese yen, Nintendo lowered their earnings expectations for the six-month period ended September...

DivX technology will soon be coming to GameCube thanks to DivXNetworks and Factor 5. The video compression technology will be offered to GameCube developers through a new SDK and will allow for 'seamless integration' of high quality videos in GameCube...

Earlier this week, we reported that Matsushita, maker of the GameCube / DVD hybrid named Q, was developing a follow-up to the console that allows for Tivo-like television recording on an internal hard drive. We now know that the system will see a more traditional flat appearance, compared to the cube shape of the Panasonic Q. 

Sega of America today announced that Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II will feature exclusive downloadable quests as part of the game's online service package. The Phantasy Star Online service package will be available from SEGA for $8.95 per month beginning at the game's launch in the U.S. on October 29, 2002. Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II can be played offline with up to four players for free. Online quests will include themed seasonal missions and will feature special items and secrets exclusive to online subscribers. Featuring a universal translation system, the game also lets online players seamlessly communicate while playing - no matter what language they speak.

full service marketing, sales promotion and interactive services company, CoActive Marketing Group today announced the US Concepts has been chosen by Nintendo to handle its GameCube promotion for 2002. The assignment comes after an extensive agency review and follows US Concepts' successful execution of the Nintendo Street Team promotion this summer. US Concepts will launch Nintendo's Reggie Award-winning Cube Club program on October 17 for a 10-week tour visiting 15 markets across the country. Setting up inside vacant retail spaces, lofts and other party spots, Cube Clubs will be created in each city's high-traffic center. To promote the Cube Club in each city, US Concepts will staff and manage Nintendo Hype Teams to distribute tickets at local malls, skate parks and other teen and young adult hangouts. Tickets will also be available online. In addition, local advertising and national media partners will help promote.

Long-time GameCube fans will surely remember the fun-filled Nintendo Cube Clubs of 2001. Well in just a few weeks, Nintendo will reintroduce the Cube Clubs at a number of cities across the United States. From October 17 to December 21, Nintendo, and...

Kemco today announced that Batman: Dark Tomorrow has been delayed until Q1 2003. Dark Tomorrow is a dynamic third person action adventure game filled with anticipation and danger. The game boasts 30 action-packed levels and 60 hours of full-motion video.

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