Neo•Geo X Getting More Games Including Blazing Star

I admit it. I was wrong. I never thought the Neo•Geo X would get any more games. But a big list of games on a new compilation called Neo Geo X Classics Vol I-V has just been released. (It’s unclear if these are sold all together or as different bundles.) Here it is:

• Art of Fighting 3
• Blazing Star (yes!)
• Breakers Revenge (yes!)
• Fatal Fury: Mark of the Wolves (yes!)
• Kizuna Encounter (yes!)
• King of Fighters ‘96
• Last Blade 2
• Metal Slug 2
• Samurai Showdown 3
• Savage Rein
• Sengoku
• Shock Troopers
• Super Sidekicks 3
• Top Hunter
• World Heroes Jet

There’s still not enough here for me to justify a purchase of the portable. Most of these games are already available as ports, re-releases and compilations. The only one I’m dying to play is Blazing Star (since the iOS port is god awful. Either way, it’s good to see that this thing is actually being supported.

This Is What Neo•Geo X Games Look Like

That’s what they look like in Photoshop anyway. Customers who pre-order the Neo•Geo X handheld will get a cart containing Ninja Masters. Presumably more games will come out on these SD cards. The official site says that the cards use special formatting, so it might be tough to get your own ROMs to play on the handheld. I’m still on the fence about this one. Future support still seems iffy and the $200 price tag could just go towards a ROM box, which is basically what the Neo X is anyway.

Neo•Geo X Drops 12/6/12

The Neo•Geo X has resurfaced with a release date of December 6, 2012 and a price of $200. That’s way better than the rumored $800. The handheld comes with an HDMI dock and a seemingly full-sized arcade stick modeled after the one that came with the Neo•Geo AES console.

However, several questions still remain. The system has a widescreen display, yet all Neo games were in 4:3 aspect ratio. Are we going to get a stretched image or vertical bars? Also, how are users going to get more games than the 20 pre-installed ones? Can they download ROMs or do they have to hope their favorite games are released down the road?

If this thing can’t play ROMs, it’s probably not worth buying. Neo•Geo fans on a budget want to play Sengoku 3 and Rage of the Dragons without paying for the AES or CMVS and - even worse - the carts. And I doubt games of that ilk will be published later on.

Neo•Geo X to Cost £500? Get Serious!

That sounds like a ridiculous price, but the UK distributors of the officially licensed Neo•Geo X have confirmed a £500 asking price. That’s nearly $800 for a handful of emulated games, most of which you can buy on the Virtual Console. For that kind of money, you could buy a Neo Big Red, 4-slot MVS board, and a box full of great MVS carts.

A few days ago, Blaze denied the prices, chalking it up to a month-old rumor on a forum. However, they’ve already backtracked and confirmed this price (though they were kind enough to state that a price drop isn’t out of the question).

What the hell are these people thinking?

A Little Bit on the Neo-Geo Side: Up for grabs on eBay is an oh-so-close-to-complete collection of the 149-game Neo-Geo MVS library. The lot includes every game except for Mr. Do and comes with shockboxes (homemade MVS cartridge holders and art inserts) as well as mainboards and even some posters. You’ll have to bring your own cab though.

A Little Bit on the Dick Side: Apparently, someone has stumbled upon a prototype of Resident Evil for Gameboy Color. He’s pledging to dump and upload the ROM of the cartridge if he is paid a cumulative $2,000 by interested gamers. Maybe I just come from a community of idealist gamers, but charging to release a proto is plain low.

Just last week, a prototype of a long lost Neo Geo game, The Last Odyssey, was released by a member of the Neo Geo community. What did he ask for in return? Absolutely nothing. And a Neo proto is whole hell of a lot more valuable than a Gameboy Color proto.

I know it’s common practice, but there are plenty of people in the proto-collecting scene that release without asking for anything. Screw these dudes who charge to release a proto. 

A Little Bit on the Neo Side: The Neo•Geo Pocket cannot escape rong death. Or can it? Early this morning, news hit that SNK-Playmore were releasing this sleek looking portable. But in reality, SNK-P just licensed their name to be slapped onto it. More digging reveals that the unit is actually being produced by a Chinese company that also makes bootleg SNES and Genesis portables. I’d love for this to be the real deal, but between the widescreen display (all Neo games are 4:3, not 16:9) and the fact that it’s just licensed by SNK-P, this is probably closer to the Gamepark portables, not a new Neo Geo Pocket.

(Source: Engadget)

King of Fighters XIII Gets Pre-Order Bonus

Atlus are never ones to skimp on the bonus content. Today they announced their “biggest pre-order offer in Atlus history.” It’s a four-disk CD compilation of KoF background music. I rarely pre-order games these days, mostly because I wait for them to drop to $20 or $30, but this bonus might be too good to resist.

OSKUNK! customized a Neo Geo system and joystick so that when you put the two side by side, they create an epic boss battle of sexy-faced radness.

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