Brian Bolland Coming To The Singapore Toys, Games And Comic Convention

Some free-of-charge advert here...Living in Singapore and being a fan of toys, games and comic, after all... This year's Singapore Toys, Games And Comic Convention definitely seem promising, what with the obligatory Cosplay (always a good source of hilarity) and toy design competition, exclusive movie trailer screenings (courtesy of local cinema giant, Golden Village) and one additional event unprecedented here: a Walk Of Fame meet-and-greet autograph session featuring... Drum roll please, one of my all-time favourite artist, Brian Bolland himself. For the uninitiated, other than his be-all-end-all "Killing Joke" with the almighty Alan Moore, Brian is arguably the best cover artist around with his massive body of work (especially so for Wonder Woman) churning out from DC on a regular basis, genre-defining stuffs on 2000 AD (especially Judge Dredd with his creation of Judge Death) and his alternate riff of epic Arthurian saga, Camelot 3000. So pardon the Fanboy tone here.

Tekken 6's Alternate Outfits By Famed Mangaka Revealed

It was long announced that following Tekken 5: Dark Ressurection's crowd-pleasing alternate outfits for almost every characters, Tekken 6, hitting the third-gen home consoles and PSP, promised to be bigger and better by inviting more high profile Managka into the fray. And the first reveal (conveniently sourced from Japan's Gamespot site) is quite a kicker, featuring Clamp, the famed all-female Mangaka group, taking on the main protagonist/antagonist, Jin Kazama. Comfortably glam by the standards of Clamp, the indisputable larger-than-life brought shades of Lars Alexandersson's in-game alternate superhero-esque outfit to mind but surpassed it by having that uniquely cold, blue-blooded Mishima's villainous aura to it. Aptly so since Jin is officially turning heel this time round. Speaking of Lars Alexandersson, word is another high profile Managaka, Masashi Kishimoto of Naruto had a run on the alternate costume for him. Courtesy of sdtekken.com, we have a scan of it.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom

Tatsunoko? Like myself, I'm pretty sure many a regular gamer will find themselves stumped by the name but however, if you happened to also be a longtime hardcore Anime freak (and when I mean "longtime hardcore", I meant being one ever since the 80s), then you probably stands a good chance knowing what it is. Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. (株式会社竜の子プロダクション or 株式会社タツノコプロダクション ,Kabushiki gaisha Tatsunoko Purodakushon?), often shortened to Tatsunoko Pro. (竜の子プロ or タツノコプロ ,Tatsunoko Puro?), is a Japanese animation company founded in 1962 by acclaimed anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida along with his brothers Kenji and Toyoharu (Toyoharu adopted the pen name Ippei Kuri to distinguish himself from his brothers). Enough rambling. A look at its portfolio of Anime series speaks best. Okay, Gatchaman anyone? Problem connecting that name? How about Battle of the Planets? For those not so nostalgic, you might be aware of the recent Anime series, "Casshern Sins", a remake of 1973's Neo-Human Casshern (新造人間キャシャーン ,Shinzō Ningen Kyashān?), which incidentally was adapted into a movie in 2004. But either way, you must have heard of Karas, a brilliant groundbreaking sixth part animation produced to commemorate the company's 40th anniversary of anime production. (The titular character's dark origin kicks the collective asses of all the billionaire orphan's clones out there) Well, it seems that Capcom are indeed getting a little carried away with their "Versus" series of crossover games as the latest title in their long-running crossover series, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes, turned out to be a genuine genre crossover. Available at Arcades and Wii exclusive, platform-wise, this can be quite a monster to market given its source material's longstanding (albeit diverse)credentials. Apparently, Capcom USA is working to resolve Tatsunoko's licensing issues outside of Japan in order for an international release.

Capcom VS Jin Yong

Ryu versus Linghu Chong(令狐沖 Reikochū)? Vega versus He Tieshou(何鐵手 Teiran)?? Ken versus Hu Fei (胡斐 Hiko)??? Eat yer heart out, Jin Yong just got "Capcomed" in the upcoming Online game that feature one bold step away from the Fighting Game Genre. Mouse. The action will be purely controlled via mouse, thus the namesake, Street Fighter Online: Mouse Generation. Talk about bizarre crossover. The preview ain't too warm, though. Check out more of the character design with all the close-up shots here.

Doraemon VS Resident Evil

You had to see it to believe it, and hell, it sure seems like a kick-ass 2D game... if it's an actual game, that is.

Castlevania: Dracula’s Curse

This is old news already. But with Warren Ellis writing the screenplay, and James Jean on helm for the art direction for the upcoming animation feature adapting one of the coolest gaming franchise series. That, is promising. The Official Movie Blog, here.

Propaganda Invades Gaming Scene

"For beginners, sewing and mending socks is the only way to increase experience and to upgrade," said Jiao Jian, a six-grade pupil in Yuexiu District, quoted by the newspaper. "Every time you are promoted to a higher level, your clothes will become more average," he said. "You have to do good deeds in order to upgrade, such as contributing and volunteering on building sites. The more you do, the better and higher you get. Thus boosting your reputation." The game also sets up tasks like a treasure hunt, which can be found in many online games. But the treasure here is a copy of Chairman Mao's Collection, unlike the usual swords or jewels. "It's a novel idea, very interesting." Jiao said. He also said he likes to battle against the secret agents mainly. "Sometimes the enemy was very strong. The fight almost exhausted me, so I would go to talk with the Party secretary to replenish my vitality at once." "As long as my experience, reputation, skill and loyalty satisfy the game's criteria, I will win and meet Chairman Mao," Jiao noted. "I still have several tasks to go through. I will 'work hard' and strive to obtain the Chairman's autograph as soon as I can." Really, would you feel any more comfortable letting your kids play this than GTA? As for Lei Feng, well, talk about drastic transformation. Wait till you see my plans for him.

The Game

It's here... Basic Specs for Sony PlayStation 3 Controller: Bluetooth Wireless Processor: Cell processor Graphics Processor: RSX "Reality Synthesizer" System Memory: 256MB XDR Resolution: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p Integrated Communications: 802.11 B/G Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.0 Built-in Features: Backward Compatible with PlayStation 2, Stands Vertically or Horizontally