For anime and manga lovers who are old enough to remember Saint Seiya or Knights of the Zodiac, they should be glad that a MMORPG centered around Saint Seiya called Saint Seiya Online will be released by Sega this year.

In China, the online game was named 圣斗士OL and is already in beta. From the prizes (from PSP to MP3 players) that the Chinese players can get during this beta testing period, we reckon that Saint Seiya Online will attract new fans who have no idea who is Athena or Masami Kurumada.
Image: 圣斗士OL

PC World Australia may have beaten me to the punch, but the news about SEGA’s impending release of the Ultimate Mega Drive Collection for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 is still news.
Late last year, the SEGA Ultimate Mega Drive Collection had merely been a rumor. Now, it’s a reality, and it’s coming to video game store shelves this January 26, at least in Australia. Is it also slated for release in North America and Europe? I really have no idea.
All I know is what’s in the SEGA Ultimate Mega Drive Collection. Here’s a partial rundown: Sonic the Hedgehog (1, …read more

Have you seen it? Or if you\’ve seen it, do you remember it? If memory serves right, the television commercial for Shinobi on the PlayStation 2 should have appeared close to its release way back in November 2002. Well, if you haven\’t seen it or wish to refresh your memory, go take a gander:\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nFor those who are clueless as to who Hiro Nakamura and Masi Oka are, they are one and the same but not really. Confusing? Haha. Read on.\r\n\r\nMasi Oka (his full name is Masayori Oka) is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-nominated actor. His most memorable role is …read more

I’ve just finished browsing through Arthur’s Hall of Viking Manliness’ 10 Manliest Video Games of All Time, and I have to say, yes, the list is indeed full of manly video games.
How did the guys up at Arthur’s Hall come up with the idea of giving the world such a list of video games? Shatner (yes, after William Shatner), Arthur’s Viking Assistant, gives us the details:
I had a discussion with Arthur the other day regarding the question, “Are video games manly?” While wasting your life away on a couch playing video games isn’t quite as manly as killing small animals …read more

Dangnabit! Someone beat me to writing a good book about retro gaming! Haha!\\\\r\\\\n\\\\r\\\\nSeriously now. Yes, someone has beaten me to the punch, but at least we get quality retro gaming tips and tricks from Chris Kohler, who has written a gamut of video gaming articles for a number of conventional and unconventional media like Wired, Official Playstation Magazine, 1up.com, IGN, Gamespy, Nintendo Official Magazine UK, and Electronic Gaming Monthly.\\\\r\\\\n\\\\r\\\\nHere\\\\\\\’s a little bit more about the author of Retro Gaming Hacks:\\\\r\\\\n\\\\r\\\\n
Kohler\\\\\\\’s first book, Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life, was published by BradyGAMES in September 2004. …read more

Ahhh, Samus, Samus, Samus—the video game babe who has captured the imagination of thousands of Metroid fans all over the world since 1986, primarily because most of her body is encased in full body armor. Actually, most guys (yes, even long-time video game players) don\\\’t know Samus is a woman.\\r\\n\\r\\nFor those grasping for answers, here\\\’s a little backgrounder on our futuristic video game babe:\\r\\n\\r\\n
Samus Aran is the main fictional character in Nintendo\\\’s Metroid series. Samus is a bounty hunter aiding the Galactic Federation to hunt down and defeat space pirates. Samus Aran wears a full body power suit given to …read more

First off, I want to apologize to readers of this space for being remiss in my posting duties. December is a hectic month, what with the holidays just around the corner, and finding time to play good, classic video games is getting harder.
So with that in mind, I’ve decided to start a new topic or category, Video games I want to play forever. It’s very literal. It will feature video games that I love and those that I want to keep playing until my computer conks out, or until my body crumples from exhaustion.
Without further ado, I present to you …read more

I spent the better part of last week looking on the Internet for a good television set to spend some serious moolah on. I wasn’t setting my sights on anything too fancy, just a simple TV with a big screen that could survive a non-stop week-long DVD marathon, or an equally long Final Fantasy series run.
Unfortunately, a family friend made the choice for me when she dropped by the house and sold us a 21-inch Sanyo television set. Hey, it’s not the best choice, but I got it on a good installment package. It also freed up my thoughts for …read more

It’s time once again for another speed run. This time we present to you Mortal Kombat 2 on a Sega featuring the wild antics of Shang Tsung. Check it out:

Sigh. It’s quite unfortunate, however, that like most speed runs, this speed run of Shang Tsung on Mortal Kombat 2 is tool assisted and played on an emulator. Ahh, but what the heck. It’s still fun watching a character beat up all his opponents from start to finish.
Next time, I’d like to see the player do it without the tool assist. :p

After suffering a humiliating defeat in the hands, er, paws of Sonic the Hedgehog, Mario is back on a Mugen game, this time versus the yellow chomping machine known as Pac-Man. From the title I just posted, it’s clear that Mario should just go back to cleaning pipes of goombas and turtles.

Look, ma, no hands! It’s strange seeing Pac-Man land blows on the diminutive Mario without flailing arms and legs. It must be his, er, its big mouth.