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2003 Update Archive

12/21/03 - Just a quick update here: have you heard of this hilarious flash cartoon series called Strategy Guide? No? Well, it's about an alien named Guido and his reviews of classic NES games... that he's not very good at. So far, both Gradius and Ghosts 'N Goblins have been the targets, and... that's really all I can say. Sound intriguing? Go to the official Strategy Guide site here, or if that doesn't work, Digital Press has the episodes mirrored here.

12/4/03 - I'm back, at least temporarily. I couldn't stay away forever, you know. ^_~ There have been lots of new additions to the Special Features article 2-D Games On 3-D Systems, and there are three new Import Reviews up!

11/13/03 - Due to circumstances beyond my control, I can no longer update my sites or even go online like I want to. Therefore, as of today, all of my sites - including this one - are on a semi-permanent hiatus. I myself will be virtually absent from the net from now on as well. I will still answer emails from time to time, but as far as any major updates to this or any of my other sites are concerned, don't expect any (aside from two Import Reviews that will be going up before too long). It is my hope that I will be able to get my sites back up and running full speed at some point - but don't hold your breath waiting for that to happen. However, please enjoy my past work and feel free to comment on it - just don't expect an immediate reply if you do.

Thanks to all of you who have visited the OPCFG; you have my most sincere gratitude.

11/01/03 - Almost a month since the last update, and I have nothing new to speak of to put up, aside from the return of the original logo. Aside from some new import reviews in the coming month, that's not likely to change, either. Keep checking back, though - I may end up surprising you. ^_^

Stay tuned...

10/9/03 - The Import Review I promised yesterday is now up! Also I had to relist the items that didn't sell. If you want to bid on either, just click on these two links: Ninja Gaiden Trilogy (SNES) and Strider & Golden Axe (SMS)

10/8/03 - There's a new Import Review going up sometime in the next few hours. Also, I'm auctioning off a few games on eBay... the auctions end tomorrow morning, but if some of them don't sell, I'm liable to repost them shortly thereafter. If you want to check them out, just click the following links: Auction #1: Ninja Gaiden Trilogy (SNES), Auction #2: The Castevania Trilogy for Gameboy, and Auction #3: Strider & Golden Axe (SMS).

10/1/03 - Seeing as how it's now October, I've decided to bring back the OPCFG Halloween logo I debuted last year. Hopefully I'll be able to think of a few articles or reviews that are appropriate for this time of year...

I love Halloween. ^_^

9/29/03 - I've added a new Import Review!

9/24/03 - Made some changes to the Forgotten Videogame Heroes And Heroines Special Features article.

9/17/03 - I've added a new Import Review!

9/10/03 - I decided to go ahead and update due to a reader submission I got for the Import Reviews section, plus I recently acquired a new import that I just had to review. The Top 100's been slightly updated as well.

The uploading is still going slowly...

9/4/03 - Just a minor update - several readers have sent info to me pertaining to the Special Features article WANTED: Konami Man And Konami Girl. Check it out!

Work goes slow on the upload, so don't expect any major updates anytime soon...

8/31/03 - There's a new Special Features article up, and there's a new logo on the main page. The original logo will return at some point - I just decided to swap it out in favor of this one that I created a little while back. And check this out - several of my import reviews will be appearing in the Reviews section of Digital Press soon!

On another note, don't expect any major updates to the site for a while - I'm in the process of backing up the entire site to my hard drive right now, and until that's done, I'm not going to be updating much.

8/10/03 - There's two more new import reviews up!

8/9/03 - There's two new import reviews up!

8/8/03 - There's a new import review up, courtesy of Swordlord, and there's a new addition to the Special Features article Ice Climber: Paging The ASPCA! from Yashiro Nanakase.

8/4/03 - Anyone interested in seeing SNK Vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos released for the Dreamcast? Then you may be interested in reading the following from Luke O'Sullivan:

SNK Playmore is considering porting SNK vs Capcom: SVC Chaos to the Dreamcast. They want anyone interested in seeing a Dreamcast port of the game to email them (info@snkplaymore.co.jp), expressing their interest in seeing the game get ported to the DC.

I've already sent them an email. ^_^ Don't forget to support Johnny Undaunted's Policenauts localization campaign either (see the entry for 7/27/03).

8/1/03 - There's a new Import Review from Swordlord, plus the PlayStation and Dreamcast sections of the 2-D Games On 3-D Systems article have been updated, courtesy of Flying Omelette and Jorge Caussade.

7/28/03 - I've updated the Saturn and PlayStation sections of the 2-D Games On 3-D Systems article, courtesy of hopesfall x.

7/27/03 - Anyone remember The Snatcher & Policenauts Petition Page? We're not sure what happened to it, but OPCFG contributor Johnny Undaunted is trying to get Policenauts localized and released in the U.S. He's requested that anyone that's interested in trying to make this happen email Konami Computer Entertainment Japan at kcej-info@konami.com and make your opinion known. I already have. ^_^

7/26/03 - In case you haven't noticed, the OPCFG is now the member of two WebRings - the Console Database WebRing and the Beatemup WebRing. Check them out at the bottom of the main page. I've also updated the N64 section of the 2-D Games On 3-D Systems article, courtesy of iron_mollusk.

7/19/03 - For those of you that have been awaiting the next chapter of Daimera Frostfeather's great R-Type story R-Type: Paved With Good Intentions, I have good news! Both Chapter 4 and 5 are up in the Video Game Fiction section, and Daimera's also sent along some new artwork as well! Check it out! Also, I've updated the PlayStation section of the 2-D Games On 3-D Systems Special Features article, thanks to PentarouZero.

7/12/03 - There's three new Import Reviews up, plus I've added a link to Phosphor Dot Fossils! On top of that, I've started my most ambitious project yet - compiling a list of 2-D games for 3-D systems. The current list can be found in the Special Features section, in the new article 2-D Games On 3-D Systems.

7/4/03 - Added a new store to the Import Stores section. Also, the strange errors appear to have cleared up - at least for now. I'm continuing to hunt for a new server anyway.

7/3/03 - I'm a father - again! Check out my personal site zero signal for more details.

6/24/03 - I've added two brand new Import Reviews! Also, the strange errors continue, as does the hunt for a new server...

6/16/03 - I'd like to announce the latest site to receive the OPCFG Award - Prime Op's fantastic site ScrollBoss! If you've never been to ScrollBoss, I highly recommend stopping by and browsing around, as there's a ton of great stuff there. Congratulations, Prime!

Now for something odd... if you're a regular visitor to the site, you may have been noticing broken images and missing pages popping up over the past few weeks. I assure you that those pages and images are still there - just keep refreshing the missing pages to bring them up, and right clicking and hitting "show picture" to bring up the broken images. Geocities has just been acting weird lately... even when I go to edit the site, it gives me strange errors more often then not. Ah, the wonders of free webspace... it may finally be time to move the site. Stay tuned for more...

6/15/03 - I've totally redone the Links section. Now it's easier to navigate through, as I've divided the links up into different categories, removed just about all of the banners, and removed the comments. I also dumped the Anti-XBox page and restructured the front page slightly.

6/7/03 - I've added a new Special Features article.

6/1/03 - I refuse to make any more predictions regarding the frequency of my updates *grumble*. Anyway, I've added another new link, this time for Boogiedown Designs!

5/31/03 - I've added another new Import Review and links to Skrybe's NES Prototype Page, Kid Fenris.com, After Burner: Station 1, and Columns Arcadia!

5/30/03 - Added a new Import Review.

5/25/03 - Added a new Import Store to the list.

5/21/03 - Hey everyone. Just to let you all know, updates are going to be few and far between for a while due to unforseen circumstances. I have a few new things that need to go up, and I'll do my best to add them ASAP.

In the meantime, check out these new screenshots of Gradius V (click on them to see them fullsize)! Fall cannot get here soon enough, I can tell you that...

Find more screenshots and info on Gradius V at both Vic Viper.com and The Gradius Base!

4/24/03 - I've added my fifth (and final) subsection to the Top 100!

4/22/03 - I've added a new Import Review and a new link to A Tribute To Games Of The '80s!

4/15/03 -

HAPPY FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OPCFG!!!

Five years ago today, the OPCFG went live for the very first time. To comemmorate the past five years, I've written a brand new Special Features article entitled Five Years Of The OPCFG: A Celebration! It details the first five years of the OPCFG's life, and contains never before seen info on the site's creation, as well as the very first Special Features article the OPCFG ever had. Also, for the first time in the site's history, I've removed Konami of America from the "No Thanks To" section in the Acknowledgements page. After all this time, I feel that they've finally redeemed themselves. Sure, we never did get the Gradius Deluxe Pack, Salamander Deluxe Pack Plus or Gradius Gaiden in the U.S., but KoA has released a lot of games recently that five years ago we thought we'd never get. I've also added a new Import Review by Michael, and a new link to GameHall Network in the Links section.

In other news, I'd like to announce that my G'NG site The Ghoul Realm is back up and running, thanks to the site's new co-webmaster Steve! With his help, The Ghoul Realm will continue to be the premier G'NG site on the web, as I simply no longer have the time to maintain it by myself. I am also looking for a co-webmaster for my site Metal Slug: Iron Cavalrymen In Hell for the same reason. If you're interested in applying for the position, visit the site for all the details, then drop me a line at axelay@ureach.com.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone that's contributed to the OPCFG over the past five years, as well as everyone that's visited the site. Thank you all, and I hope you all keep coming back, as there's lots more to come in the future!

4/3/03 - I've added (you guessed it) another Import Review - and a new Import Store to the listing!

3/30/03 - I've added yet another Import Review!

3/26/03 - I've added another new Import Review, and made some more changes to the Forgotten Videogame Heroes And Heroines article.

3/22/03 - I've added a new Import Review. Check it out!

3/18/03 - Updated my NES, PC Engine and Saturn lists with some new additions, and I added a note to the Wanted! section, as well as removing several games from that list (thanks to Hotaka!).

3/11/03 - I've added a new subsection to the Top 100 - my Top 20 Favorite Licensed Games!

3/10/03 - I've made some changes to the Forgotten Videogame Heroes And Heroines article.

3/3/03 - I'm back, at least semi-regularly for the time being. I've got intermittent net access now, which will change to full access once my wife and I get settled into our own place. Until that happens, however, the only sites I'll be updating are this one, zero signal and West Mansion. The Ghoul Realm and Metal Slug: ICIH are still on hiatus until I get full net access again.

I've gotten quite a bit to add since I left, and now I've finally been able to add everything I've received since January. There's a new import store listed in the Import Stores section, there's a new link to the fan fiction site Capcom Strike Force, I edited my Top 20 Favorite Arcade Games article, and a really cool Japanese reader by the name of Hotaka has sent in new info for the Special Features articles XEXEX: Konami's R-Type?, The Hidden Message In Gradius (NES), Are The Home Versions Of Some Gradius Arcade Games Direct Ports?, Konami's Famicom Games and Nemesis '90: The Lost Gradius. Enjoy!

Oh, and if you like R-Type, you may want to check out Irem's official page for the new PS2 R-Type that's coming out this year, R-Type Final! A new Gradius and a new R-Type in the same year... wow.

1/22/03 - The promised Special Features article is up! This one focuses on a shmup that a lot of shooter fans really think deserves more attention than it got. Check it out!

Unfortunately, this will be the last update for quite some time. As of today, the OPCFG is officially going on hiatus until further notice. Once my net access is reestablished, I will start updating again, but until then no new updates will be forthcoming. However, even if I don't have net access reestablished by April 15th, I will find a way to get back online that day for a fifth anniversary update! That's right, the OPCFG turns five April 15th - and come hell or high water, I will be here that day to celebrate!

So until I have steady net access again or until April 15th, I just want to thank you all for visiting the OPCFG, and I hope you'll be back - because one way or another, I will be. Thanks again, and remember - keep on playing the classics! ^_^

1/20/03 - The new (and unfortunately last for now) Import Review is up! Check it out, and keep on the lookout for the new Special Features article to be posted in the next day or so.

1/17/03 - Some absolutely fantastic news has been announced! Straight from Konami of America's Press Room, from the latest press release announcing new games slated to come out this year (dated 1/16/03):

Gradius V
Release date: Fall 2003
Genre: Shooting
Platform: Sony PlayStation 2

The Vic Viper returns in Gradius V - the first title in Konami's classic space-shooter series that has been specifically designed for the Sony PlayStation 2. Gradius V preserves the franchise's classic gameplay and features stunning 3D graphics, inspired game design elements and a new control scheme that gives players more power than ever!

This is fantastic!!! If they can keep the game true to the description they've provided, this could be the Gradius game to end all other Gradius games! Believe me, during the course of the year I will be keeping track of its development and posting what I know about it here. Come hell or high water, I will find a way to get online and post whatever news I find about the game. I certainly hope Konami of America decides to release it here and doesn't change their mind about it like they have in the past (Gradius Gaiden, anyone?). They've been pretty good about releasing new Gradius games outside of Japan so far, ever since they released Gradius III & IV here in the U.S.. Let's just hope they keep this trend up.

I have a feeling that if I buy only one new game this year, Gradius V is going to be it. Of course, if Namco delivers a new Splatterhouse (according to rumor, Namco is considering a new 3-D sequel for one of the next-gen systems), then I'll have to buy two games this year, but that's another story entirely. Keep checking West Mansion for more info on this new Splatterhouse as it becomes available (of course, as of right now that's if it becomes available).

Here's one other thing I picked up about Gradius V, from Gamers.com:

Hoping to breathe new life into the nearly defunct space-shooter genre, Konami will release Gradius V later this year. Although this new installment will make use of 3D graphics, original Gradius developer Treasure will return to ensure that the gameplay remains similar to the older titles (members of Treasure were part of the team that worked on the original Gradius). According to Konami, Gradius V will make use of a new control scheme that is said to give players "more control than ever". We're not entirely sure how this will work, but our interest in certainly piqued.

This is interesting news indeed. If Treasure's really involved in this... well, that just makes me happy on so many different levels. I am so there!

Konami also announced another new Castlevania for the GameBoy Advance - Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, which from the brief description they provided, sounds like yet another SotN style game, although now set in the 21st century (turns out that's exactly the case - check out The Castlevania Dungeon for more details). Hmmm... so far I'm not excited. I have yet to get Harmony of Dissonance for one thing, and I have to admit that the SotN style is starting to wear extremely thin in my eyes, as is the fact that the GBA seems to be the system of choice for new Castlevanias. Come on guys - how about making a new 2.5-D game on the PS2, and make it an "old school vampire killing jam" a la Castlevania, Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse or Akumajo Dracula X: Chi no Rondo? For that matter, how about a Castlevania Chronicles rerelease of Chi no Rondo? Get with the program, guys, at least as far as Castlevania is concerned.

Konami also announced the following games for the PS2 - Silent Hill 3, Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner, Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance and (drumroll please) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (which is also slated for release on the GameCube and GBA)! Here's hoping that Konami will be able to keep the feel of the original arcade TMNT games intact in this new 3-D incarnation...

There's a new Import Review coming up shortly, along with a new Special Features article as promised before I leave, so keep an eye out for those.

1/15/03 - If anyone has read my personal site zero signal lately, then you've heard the news. If not, here's what's going on - as of next Wednesday morning, all of my sites are going on hiatus, due to my family and I moving to Georgia. I'll be losing my internet connection and I don't know when I'll have it back. I'll find a way to get online for the OPCFG's fifth anniversary in April, though. In the meantime before we move, I'm trying to make a little extra cash. I have several auctions on eBay currently - if you'd like to check them out, go here.

There will be (hopefully) at least one more import review and one more Special Features article posted before I go - look out for them soon!

1/6/03 - Happy New Year, everyone! Have you noticed the small banner over the logo on the main page, the one that says "Destiny Reawakens"? Maybe you've clicked it, and you're curious as to what this whole "Castle Vanity" thing is about. Keep checking back, and all will be revealed to you...

There's been some new pictures added to Clay Horning's Special Features article Secret of Evermore Meets Final Fantasy, plus I've added a link to Master System.org! Check them out!

On a somewhat darker note... even though I'm back now, I may not be for too much longer. Check my personal site zero signal for more info.