X B O X

- According to the sales report from Japan, the launch of XBox in Japan has not created an impact on the sale of both PlayStation 2 and GameCube, Microsoft has sold about 123,000 units of XBox for the week of February 22, close to 50% of the initial shipment. Game retailers from Osaka and Tokyo mentioned that they have sold about 12 - 20% of their initial shipment of XBox. The best performing launch titles are Dead or Alive 3, Jet Set Radio Future and Genma Onimusha, and the ratio of hardware and software sales is 1:1.5 (i.e. each person bought one XBox console and 1.5 units of game title).

- Here are the latest XBox game review scores from Japan:

• Dead or Alive 3 (Tecmo, Fighting) - 10, 9, 9, 9 (37 / 40)
• Genma Onimusha (Capcom, Action) - 8, 9, 9, 9 (34 / 40)
• Project Gotham Racing (Microsoft, Racing) - 9, 8, 9, 7 (33 / 40)
• Silent Hill 2 (Konami, Adventure) - 8, 8, 8, 8 (32 / 40)
• Jet Set Radio Future (Sega, Action) - 8, 9, 7, 8 (32 / 40)
• ESPN Winter X Games Snowboarding (Konami, Sports) - 8, 8, 8, 8 (32 / 40)
• Nobunaga's Ambition (Koei, Simulation) - 8, 8, 8, 7 (31 / 40)
• Air Force Delta II (Konami, Shooting) - 8, 7, 7, 7 (29 / 40)
• Tenku: Freestyle Snowboarding (Microsoft, Sports) - 8, 7, 7, 7 (29 / 40)
• Hyper Sports Winter 2002 (Konami, Sports) - 7, 6, 7, 7 (27 / 40)
• Double S.T.E.A.L. (Bunkasha Publishing, Racing) - 7, 7, 6, 6 (26 / 40)
• Nezumi Kuzu: Have a Mice Day (Microsoft, Action) - 6, 6, 5, 5 (22 / 40)
• Metal Dungeons (Panther Software, Action) - 7, 6, 5, 5 (23 / 40)
• Kabuki Warriors (Genki, Fighting) - 6, 5, 5, 4 (20 / 40)

D R E A M C A S T

- Here are some new screens of the Dreamcast version of Bandai's Mobile Suit Gundam: Federation Vs Zion DX, scheduled to release in Japan on April 11, for 6800 yen. The Dreamcast version will feature both the original version and DX version in the same package, both versions will have Communication Battle support, allowing you to battle with another person over the internet. If you pre-order the game at Sega's D-Direct, you will also receive a bonus Original B2 Poster.

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- Enix announced the release date of the PSone version of Dragon Quest Monsters 1 & 2, the game is scheduled for release on March 31, for 6800 yen. The game features all 3 versions of the GameBoy Color RPG in a single game.

- Also ported over from GameBoy Color, Atlus has confirmed the release date of Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Children Black & Red Book for PlayStation, the game is scheduled for release in Japan on March 28, for 5800 yen.

- Universal Interactive announced Spyro: Enter the Dragonfly for PlayStation 2, the latest sequel of the fire breathing Dragon's adventure game. This time Spryo the Dragon can use different element breaths against enemies, such as fire, ice, electricity and bubble breath.

- Here are some images of Takara's J-Phoenix: Burst Tactics for PlayStation 2, the second installment of their popular mech combat action game, scheduled to release in Japan in April. This time there will be more customizable parts, weapons and armors, including homing missiles and anti-missile armors. During the mission, you can also bring along companion mechs, who can assist you in various ways during the battles.

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- Here are some new screen shots of Square's PlayStation 2 baseball game Nichibeikan Pro Baseball: Final League, the game is scheduled for release in March. This game features professional baseball teams from both Japan and America. The play modes include All Star, Tournament, Open and League. In the League mode, you can collect money from the tournaments, and go out to purchase and collect players from other Japanese or US teams and create your own dream team.

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H A N D H E L D S

- Namco will release Namco Super War for WonderSwan Color in Japan on April 25, for 4980 yen. The game features over 14 classic Namco characters, from games like Legend of Valkyrie, Dragon Buster, Dragon Spirit, The Tower of Druaga, Yenpin Kiyoshi and more. The game centers on time travelling, you travel to different time to defeat the enemies, meet with other characters and proceed the story.

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- Sammy will release Initial D: Another Stage for GameBoy Advance in mid-April, an adventure game based on the popular anime series Initial D. The game features a command based racing game, in which you have to use RPG like commands to control your car.

- Sega has release some new screen shots of their GameBoy Advance action RPG Shining Soul, the game is scheduled for release on March 28, for 5800 yen. Up to 4 players can join the same game together using the link cable.

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