With a new week, comes a new digest. And what have we got lined up for you this week, you may ask? The answer is the same as last week- a random cocktail of the best news of the past week.

Well no point in beating about the bush- let's get stuck in. Interesting me the most this week is the rumour (rumour, mind. So don't take it as fact) that Nintendo are set to release a special GC disk containing a host of Zelda games: The original Legend of Zelda, it's side-scrolling sequel, Link's Adventure, as well as Ocarina of Time and it's time-travelling semi-sequel, Majora's Mask. All 4 are cast-iron classics, of course. It's also said that a Zelda documentary will be included. And if we're to believe these rumours, it'll come with every Cube at about Christmas. If it's true, Nintendo will surely have the sense to make it available in some other way. Hope it's true.

Sticking with the general 'bonus disk' theme (which Ninty have become very active in of late) news has reached us that Japanese buyers of the upcoming Pokemon Colosseum will be treated to yet another of the blighters- this time containing some super-dooper items for the GBA Pokemon games, including: PP MAXs, a Pikachu with a Light Ball attached, and a Master Ball. Nice enough. Moving on , and Capcom have announced that they will be releasing a Megaman compilation, much in the vein of Sega's recent Sonic Mega Collection. 10 games are included, as well as artwork, TV ads, soundtracks, and other bells and whistles you'd associate with this sort of thing. It's also coming out on the PS2 and will be out in America in February. According to Capcom's press release, it'll offer 'hours of endless entertainment". Now there's an oxymoron if ever I heard one.

Plenty of stuff on C-E this week- highlights include the article formerly known as Bitchzone, now called Level-Up. Ben's fed up bitching, but you can still expect the same insight into gaming he's been offering these past months. Conor has just finished his epic series on the history of gaming. You just know he's going to make it as a history teacher. But in all seriousness, it's a super piece of work, and frankly it's going to become an invaluable resource for a lot of people on the site.

Nintendo of Europe are warning people about fake emails asking for their VIP details. The bottom line is simple- unless it's from the @nintendo-europe domain, it's not form Nintendo at all, but from someone trying to steal all your hard-earned stars. Which brings me on nicely to this week's Stars Catalogue debacle. Y'know, it's amazing what people will do for a freebie; and this was in evidence last Monday afternoon, when the countdown heralding the relaunch of Nintendo's online Stars Catalogue expired. Thousands of people rushed in, trying to exchange their stars for something hard and material, rather than a wallpaper I could have made myself. And what happened? The server promptly went down. Some people did though manage to salvage some prizes from the wreckage; but those were the lucky few. Thankfully, Nintendo have promised to fix the capacity problems, and ensure there's enough room for everyone to visit. Better still, Ninty said that there are 800 items being lined up for the catalogue, and will change it weekly. Good on you, Nintendo . Me? I'm salivating at the prospect of being able to spend my 5,000 stars on something decent.

A suprising piece of U.S sales news, next- the hotly anticipated Soul Calibur II has produced an interesting set of sales figures. The GC version takes top spot with 245,000, Xbox next with 205,000 and the PS2 bringing up the rear with 200,000. The GC-exclusive Link character is one of the driving forces behind this, as is the fact that there aren't too many triple-A beat 'em ups on the GameCube. A thought struck me today though- that Soul Calibur II is one of the first games to be developed simultaneously on all three consoles with each version tailored specifically to the abilities of each console. So a pat on the back is due to Namco for having the gumption to do things properly. And let that be a lesson to other third-parties who treat the GameCube like a PlayStation 2. Despite reports that Eidos were to drop the GameCube it seems that they may develop games for it in the future. According to Robert Dyer, president of Eidos Interactive, they will develop games on a game-by-game basis. "We look at each title and try to determine if we think there is an opportunity on the Cube," said Dyer, "We released Hitman 2 and Italian Job for it and will continue to look at what might work with it. As of today, we haven't announced anything coming up, but that isn't to say we wouldn't do something in the future." We shall see.

There really isn't a whole pile of other news to report this week. So we'll leave it there. Questions, suggestions, queries and complaints (on any issue you care to write about) to [email protected] (the wave of viruses has subsided!)

Sl�n go f�ill.
Mark Cullinane