Hello all. Mark is away to the sunny shores of France, so I'll be your guide today for the ups and downs of the past week. Truth be told, there hasn't been a massive amount of Nintendo-related happenings this past while. Blame the season. Not only do we get no games, we get little news too. Oh well, I guess we can't expect a new console unveiling every week, now can we?

Not only was last friday my birthday (17th if you're interested), but it was also the day the latest Pokemon games touched down on European shores. Ruby and Sapphire were the sequels to the successful Silver and Gold games, whch in turn were the sequels to the original two. Blue and Red were undeniably RPG classics, and the series has carried Nintendo when their chips were down. When the N64 was going nowhere in Japan, it was Game Freak's batch of little critters that kept Nintendo's head above the water. Some have said that Pokemon was just a fad, that once Red and Blue fever had run out then it would be just another role-playing series. But the cynics have been proven wrong; despite being released near the end of the year, Ruby and Sapphire still managed to be Japan's two biggest sellers of the year. And thankfully little enthusiasm has been lost in the games' voyage to Europe. This week figures came in that in it's first weekend, the games have sold half a million copies. GBA hardware sales were up 50% too. Although the two new installments of the series don't bring a whole lot of new ideas to the well-tested formula, they're still great games to pass the summer months with. It's good to see that Pikachu and co. still have great drawing power. Here's hoping we eventually see a proper home console version of the series. To be honest, I've a hunch we won't see one until Gamecube's successor's launch. But here's hoping we don't have to wait that long.

So, any Star Wars fans in the audience? Well, guessing from the amount of people who put down 'Jedi' in the latest concensus there's at least a few Forcefans reading this. And chances are you're looking forward to Rogue Squadron 3: Rebel Strike. LucasArts' latest SW game is similar to the pretty Rogue Leader, a game that a few of us (read: myself) got a little over-excited about. LucasArt's have shown great generosity with the game - we already knew it include a two-player version of Rogue Leader for those who missed it the first time round, or want to take down the Empire with a mate. But the publisher announced this week that those who pre-order it in America will receive a special free disc. On it is a playable demo of Factor 5's Gladius, an action-packed recreation of gladiator combat, and, strangely, a RSIII trailer and demo (why would you want a demo of a game you own?). But the most exciting feature is the classic 1982 Star Wars arcade game. You all know of the game. For it's time it was technologically advanced and just blew gamers away. Playing it with a GC controller on your telly certainly won't be as good as sitting back in that seat with the big screen in front of you, blasting away on the joystick. Nevertheless, to get it free by just pre-ordering what is looking to be a solid game is certainly attractive. We've got no word on a European disc, but we'd be surprised if the good folks at LucasArts didn't see fit to give us the same treatment as our Stateside counterparts.

Speaking of arcade games, ever wondered what it would be like to play a coin-op Gamecube game? Well, if you live in South Korea then you have that very opportunity. For in that country a coin-op Super Mario Sunshine cabinet has been spotted. You'd have to wonder how that'd work - platformer games aren't exactly perfect arcade material. Arcade games have to be short, quick and easily-accessible. And a platformer is not that. A memory card slot is clearly visable, so presumably you can bring your memory card and play your save file. But, erm, why? Perhaps this is just a joke. But it is interesting. Tell ya what usually isn't too interesting - ECTS. A poor man's E3, Nintendo usually stay way, and when they do show their line-up isn't always that excitable. Last year they had a promising Nintendo Breakfast, and this year they will be attending the actual show. ECTS is just part of the London Games Week, which also includes the Developer Awards, Game Charity Ball, PlayStation Experience. and the Game Developers Conference. ECTS opens to the public on Wednesday 27th of this month, in Earls Court. For once, a figure of authority has had something worthwhile to say about videogames, with Ken Livingstone, the capital's mayor praising Games Week.

"The industry has been through some difficult times recently, but there is huge potential for growth and the Creative Industries Commission at the London Development Agency will report to me soon on the ways that the public and private sector can work together to support the creative industries as a whole," he said."I hope London Games Week will be a fruitful and enjoyable event." It's nice to see a politician talking sense about the games industry, rather than blaming it for corrupting young minds. Even if he was obligated to do so.

Some good news for Ikaruga fans now. If you're hankering for more 2D shooter action, then listen up. We've received new details, screens and a trailer for the promising port of Alfa System's sequel to arcade shooter Shikigami no Shiro (Castle of Shikigami). Gamecube was chosen as the console for MediaQuest to port the Castle of Shikigami 2 to after a poll on their site favoured our console. Fair enough, there is an Xbox version, but it's only available in Japan in petite mail-order quantities. The game's strong plot will be told through the game with in-game anime cutscenes, and will be available in Japan on October 24. There's nothing known about a Western release, but a site for the game will be launching near the end of the month, so maybe we'll find out something then. If not, then get your hands on a Freeloader. I mean, it's story can't be that important, can it? You can check out the screens here, and download the trailer here. If you're intersted in that type of game, then be sure to see our video preview of the similar Star Soldier. Coming from Hudson, Star Soldier is part of their classic 'Hudson Collection', which will also debut with an updated Lode Runner game. You may remember the okay-ish N64 game, and the Gamecube edition is a remake of sorts of it. Obviously the graphics have been given a major overhaul, but the more complex gameplay ideas which have been injected are what is most interesting. It's already available in Japan for a cheap price, all you import fans. We probably won't see it over here, so again, best be contacting Dattel. Since we're on the subject of the Freeloader, if you're experiencing any problems running the Japanese F-Zero GC disc, head here to find out how to fix them.

Now that Tim has splashed out on some special hardware, so we can now offer our readers direct-feed videos. At no cost too. Along with our Viewtiful Joe review (not many of them floating about), you can download some head-frying VJ vids (the first boss and second level), and take a look at Kirby's Air Ride and multiplayer F-Zero in action. Oh, and we've also got the verdict on Mario Golf. Take a look-see, it seems very fun indeed. We've time for a final bit of news; EA have said that they can predict the release of the three next-gen consoles, by the time they get their development kits. So far they have none, so we've at least two years left in out Gamecube anyway. Nintendo's next console to be released in Japan next year? Doubtful.

And on a closing note, anyone interested in learning more about the history of this industry we so love would do well to check back at C-E this Saturday, for the start of my History Of Gaming features. I'll be heading away on holidays this Sunday too, so I'm leaving the task of keeping it running weekly in the capable hands of our editors while I bask in the sun, Advance Wars in-hand.

Happy Gaming!
Conor Smyth
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