E3 2004: Sammy Line-Up Revealed

Everyone's favourite hostile taking over pachinko giant reveals its line-up for next month. There are some worth keeping an eye on.

Sammy today announced the line-up of videogames it is showcasing at E3 next month.

Let's start with the quote boat, yes?

"We are showing a line-up indicative of our company's aim of creating new game trends," said John Rowe, president and chief operating officer, Sammy Studios, Inc. "With original properties and innovative concepts, we want to offer gamers a new source for video games that will satisfy their cravings for compelling and emotional game playing experiences."

Sammy Studios will showcase the following games at E3 2004:

• Darkwatch (PS2, Xbox): The company's internal development debut. Created by the team who founded the Carlsbad-based studio, Darkwatch is an original first person shooter combining the Western and Horror genres to create a cinematic experience with unparalleled depth and game play variety. As half-vampire Jericho Cross, players must hunt down a powerful vampire lord whose undead minions have overrun the Wild West. The result is a stylistic premise blending western and vampire-horror milieus, and one injected with innovative concepts. Gunslingers and ghouls, rifles and rocket launchers and undead horses and high-octane vehicles all exist side by side in the unique Darkwatch universe. At E3, Darkwatch will debut a live game demonstration in a replica of an in-game haunted church. The experience is designed to highlight the inspired premise and features sure to establish it as "Most Wanted" at the show. Tickets for free admission to the theatre will be distributed inside badge inserts for all E3 attendees, and audience members will be eligible to win a video game collector's dream; a one-of-a-kind Guilty Gear XX Reload arcade machine. Developed by Sammy Studios, Darkwatch is slated for release in Spring 2005.

• The Shield (PS2, Xbox): Based on the Emmy and Golden Globe winning FX network police show that has become one of the most talked about programs on television. At E3, Sammy Studios will give the public their first look at this authentic adaptation of the trailblazing series, a game promising to deliver an experience akin to a "lost episode." The Shield is a third-person action game putting players in the role of Vic Mackey, a hard-nosed cop fighting a war on crime where, to him, the ends justify the means. The company is working closely with Fox Television Studios and "THE SHIELD" creators and talent to recreate the show's trademark intensity and visceral emotional impact in a true-to-life police action game. Developed by Point of View, Inc., The Shield is slated for release in Spring 2005.

• Spy Fiction (PS2): Brings "never-before-seen" features to the stealth-action genre. Spy Fiction introduces the revolutionary ability to steal the appearance and other characteristics of any character in the game and assume their identity. The game brings fast-paced action and variety to stealth, with action-oriented mini-games and spy gadgets designed to let players avoid detection while onSpy Fictionpy Fiction" boasts amazing graphics, with character design by famed artist Renji Murata (Last Exile) and a range of soon-to-be-revealed upgrades not found in the recent Japanese release. Developed by Access Games, Inc., Spy Fiction is slated for release in September 2004.

• Iron Phoenix (Xbox): brings a new genre to online multiplayer games as the first-ever 16-player 3D fighting game. This Kung-Fu brawler, introducing team-based melee combat, wide-open environments and wire-fu style fighting to the 3D fighting genre, will get its playable debut at the show in a LAN tournament open to all E3 attendees. "Iron Phoenix" promises a huge variety of weapons-based combos, more than ten playable characters a robust single-player mission mode and numerous online play modes. Iron Phoenix is slated for release Holiday 2004.

• Guilty Gear Isuka (PS2): The newest sequel in the acclaimed 2D fighter series. The game promises to raise the bar on the genre, one arguably set by its own predecessor "Guilty Gear X2," by introducing 4-player simultaneous play, combo customization, all-new play modes and new characters and arenas. Developed by Arc System Works Co., Ltd., "Guilty Gear Isuka" is slated for release in Holiday 2004.

See - videogames can be fun, and can even make money!

Adam Doree
Director, Kikizo.com