Zippo's Nonsensical Ramblings and Other Stuff

  Here's the second part. I may do a third part or a "true" finale to this in the future if I come up with more ideas and talking points. Star Fox is a franchise that is completely near and dear to my very being and I want them to nail this so this is a healthy franchise. I believe in the team.  Smash: This is pretty self explanatory, but giving Star Fox additional representation in terms of new characters, stages, music, and whatnot would really go to show newcomers exactly what is so appealing about the franchise and what they're missing out on. I know many people myself who got into Star Fox due to both Melee and Brawl. Keep the strong representation going  Emphasis on Online Multiplayer: Star Fox 64 and Star Fox Assault are both very well known and regarded for their 4 player competitive modes. Command even took this further by having fully featured online multiplayer. It's time to do that again.  Star Fox 64 3D and Zero not featuring online multiplayer was ab...

Captain Falcon and company finally returned in a new game in last year's F-Zero 99, and now, it's time for the next lap.  As was reported previously by numerous sources, the GameCube installment of the F-Zero series is coming to the Switch, fully remastered, with the title F-Zero GX Recharged .  Here are a few things I've heard about it: -Game looks absolutely stunning. Will run in a very smooth 1080p/60 FPS.  -Has a fully featured online mode, as well as the usual 4 player shenanigans.  -Will feature the addition of a casual mode, perfect for newcomers who are brand new to F-Zero.  -Game has been finished for well over a year, as is Nintendo tradition, they just sit on things until they feel like releasing them.  Additionally, I've heard that this and 99 are essentially "taste tests", so that Nintendo can gauge consumer's interests a new installment in the future. Want a new F-Zero? BUY THIS!  Gonna be super transparent about this, I have no idea what...

Ah.  Star Fox, Star Fox, Star Fox... Where do I even begin with this incredibly addictive, charming, yet inconsistent, hot mess of a franchise? You all know the story, Shigeru Miyamoto, Takaya Imamura, Dylan Cuthbert, Giles Goddard and many other talented folks at Nintendo and Arganaut teamed up to make one of the biggest leaps in gaming of all time, as well as beginning a brand new core franchise for Nintendo.  Star Fox Zero hit the soon to be dead Wii U system in 2016, the cancelled Star Fox 2 hit Nintendo's SNES classic in 2017, and outside of a few guest appearances in Starlink and Smash Bros., it's been lights out for the Star Fox team since then.  Seven years is a very long time. Since then, Nintendo has been on top of the world, with the Switch becoming a monumental success the world hasn't seen since the days of the DS, Super Nintendo World having since opened and becoming a major worldwide tourist attraction, and of course, the release of the Super Mario Bros. Mo...

Hi there!  Didn't think you'd see me again, right? I'm extremely, extremely, sorry for for the long wait, but I genuinely needed some much needed time away from the hustle and bustle of rumors.  Many hours of prayer, meditation and soul searching was what I needed to bring me peace, and I got that in spades. I'm very, very blessed.  Things are good, no, things are great , and this is the best I've felt mentally in a long time. I've had hundreds of messages from people wondering if I was around or even alive, and here I am. Thank you, to all of you, who were actually concerned about my mental and physical health.  I apologize to all of my readers. I see so many of you in the comments, asking genuine questions, requesting I talk about so many different things and I apologize for not getting to all of you sooner.  I'm not making this blog for coverage from newsites nor YouTubers, I'm making this for you, the reader, to relax, take your mind off things, and ...

Who said we were done with SEGA scoops? Here, have another!  Phantasy Star is SEGA's longest running franchise, and has been going strong since 1987. In 2000, Phantasy Star Online, an online MMORPG subseries, started, released for the Dreamcast. A sequel was released in 2012 and has been ongoing with continuous support since then.   I'm happy to report that a new installment in the series is in development at SEGA's headquarters in Japan, and is being labeled as either a reboot/reimagining of the original Dreamcast Phantasy Star Online game. It is once again a MMO being developed by the same development team.  I haven't been told whether or this is a Unreal Engine project, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was. No release date has been given, but it does sound like it's a ways out, so don't expect to hear about this one for awhile.  PSO2 players shouldn't worry, SEGA have no plans to stop support of that game anytime soon.  I'm someone who spent an u...

  Well. What goes up, must come down. That was quick. What an insane day this has been.  You people are insane. I wanted to wait a bit, but why the hell not.  Secret is out. 2003's seminal Sonic Heroes is being remade for current generation consoles, in Unreal Engine 5.  It took a couple of hours, but someone figured it out.  On the previous article, I specifically spelled out: S O N I C H E R O E S Took a bit, but people caught on. One of the biggest brained moves I've ever done, to be honest.  Work just began, and it's not expected to release until late 2026-2027, so it's gonna be awhile. Still an extremely important game for a lot of people, so I'm happy for them. Heroes has a lot of untapped potential. Let's see if they get it right this time. SOOONIC HEROESSS  SOOONIC HEROESSS  BIND YOU, CONFINE YOU DEFYING YOUR REIGN SOOONIC HEROESSS  SOOONIC HEROESSS  SETTING THE STAGE FOR A HEROES PARADE

Salutatons and hello there. I'm back, with another scoop.  Oh boy. SEGA's having quite a year, aren't they? With the excellent Persona 3 Reload and Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth both being critically acclaimed and huge hits right from the start. There's even more to come this year, with a brand new Super Monkey Ball game hitting in June, and there's also a smorgasbord of new Sonic content on the horizon, ending with the release of Sonic The Hedgehog 3 this December.  Not gonna lie. This is pretty exciting. One of the core reasons being cited for this huge surge of success is Epic's ever-so-omnipotent Unreal Engine. It's had a long history of powering some of the most popular game series on earth, and that's not stopping anytime soon, with Japanese companies such as Square Enix, Bandai Namco, and even Nintendo now joining the fray. One of these companies that has been slow to adopt the engine is SEGA. Those days are clearly over, here are some more games ...

Happy Belated Mario Day to all of you out there in the Mushroom Kingdom.  We had quite a few Mario announcements over the weekend, including LEGO Mario Kart, and release date announcements for Paper Mario and Luigi's Mansion 2.  Obviously, the biggest deal was the announcement of a brand new film "Based Around The World Of Super Mario Bros."  Essentially meaning, this is NOT a sequel to the Super Mario Bros. movie, if you were wondering.  I can confirm from my own sources that is indeed the case. This movie is a spinoff.  Here's where it gets crazy: I'm hearing that this film is either Luigi's Mansion OR the Donkey Kong film. Both of which are in development at Illumination.  I DO NOT KNOW which film has taken the April 2026 date, but I DO know a few things that point to it being the former: I'm also hearing that Next Level Games' Switch 2 debut, Luigi Mansion 4, Is set to release in the first half of 2026.  The game is sounding incredibly ambitious, ...

  I... God. I don't even know what to say.  I'm hurting. Wiping pools of tears from my eyes as I type this.  Words cannot describe how hurt I feel right now. I'm absolutely devastated.  This man's energy, passion, ingenuity, it inspired me from the moment I saw his characters come to life.  This man left such a remarkable impact on so, so many people's lives. Including mine.  There are very few things in my life that mean as much to me as Dragon Ball does. The characters, the world, the stories, the lessons it shares. It's made me a better, wiser person.  Saying thank you to Toriyama san just isn't enough.  The impact he's left on our world is incalculable. I'm hurt. I'm heartbroken. I can't even imagine what his family is going through. I just pray that they're all alright.  We truly have lost a legend, and I just hope everyone appreciates his works that much more. Mr. Toriyama may be gone from this mortal plane, but his works will live ...

2024 will be another crazy year for the blue blur, with a new movie, multiple games and other big things happening. I can finally divulge a little bit more on one of the projects.  Sonic Toys Party is a party game in development for mobile devices. Here are a few details: -Is being developed by SEGA's mobile division in Japan. Not Hardlight this time, which is surprising.  -Is a party game that's very similar to Fall Guys. Tho ugh it does have traditional Sonic elements such as platforming and loops.  -Has it's own distinct art style, Sonic and the gang have sort of an in-between mesh of regular Sonic and the Sonic and Friends designs.  -Green Hill and Chemical Plant will appear once again. Ugh, yes. This is the 100th time we've seen them and i'm getting sick of them too.  -Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Rouge will be some of the numerous playable characters featured.  -Game is set for release sometime in the summer.  So, there you have it, I haven't ...

* Sigh* To say the last few days have been incredibly deflating is a massive understatement.  We were this, and I mean *this* close to having the Switch successor officially announced.  Unfortunately, reports from the major trades have confirmed that the system has been delayed into next year. Those are unfortunately accurate, and that means we're dealing with yet another year of dusty old Switch. It's really, really disappointing, but these types of things just happen. Some of Nintendo's launch window games apparently need more time and I'll always support game developers taking all the time they need. Game development is hard, guys. This also means every Switch 2 game I have told you folks about will obviously have to be pushed back, as well.  Nintendo was prepared for this, though. They are sitting on well over a dozen finished Switch games that are ready to go at anytime now.  As a part of Nintendo's revised schedule this this year, Metroid Prime 4, two new main...

Well, would you look at that? We have our game announcement. Way earlier than we expected.  Gotta say, that's one of the coolest, slickly edited trailers SEGA have ever done. Shadow just being smoothly edited into that re-rendered CG was fantastic. Very Smash like.  Anyway, yes, this is indeed the game. A couple wires got crossed, but all of the details I previously heard line up. To reiterate: -Being developed by Sonic Team and SEGA Sapporo.  -Shorter length, traditional Sonic game. Should be around 2-3 hours.  -Will release around the time of the third movie.  -Yes, this is coming to Nintendo's next console.  -Also, new animated shorts from Powerhouse Animation are being made to coincide with the game.  There's more Sonic announcements to come before too long, console and mobile wise, more on that soon. 

Well, this week certainly started with a boom. A Sonic Boom, perhaps? Bad puns aside, multiple sources have leaked the entire State of Play days before it's airing date. Can't confirm the other contents myself, but yes, a remaster of 2011's beloved Sonic Generations is on the way for this year.  Here's the bits I know: -It's a remaster from the ground up, it's now running on the Hedgehog Engine 2.  -The console versions will now run at 60FPS with the option for 4K. -There's been a very strong internal mandate from SEGA higher ups to improve the quality of Sonic remasters from now on, so *knock on wood*, no Colors Ultimate and Origins mishaps this time.  -There is brand new content, featuring Shadow.  -Will release in the first half of the year, sometime around Sonic 's 33rd birthday in June.  And just to get ahead of all of the speculation, no, this is not the Sonic/Shadow game I'm hearing about. That's a brand new game coming this holiday, in ti...

Hey, remember how I said in 2022 that a new Star Fox game is in development? I have an update. But first, here's some interesting findings.  Code for this new Star Fox appears to have been in Switch Sports this entire time, it's gone widely unreported on for some reason.  Next, a trademark was filed for Star Fox last month, on December 19th, in Brazil, of all places: Finally:  Star Fox was given an entirely brand new trademark last November as well. Why is this interesting? Because it's a new trademark, it's not Nintendo renewing it or anything like that, which is what they usually do in these situations.  Credits for these findings go to Mondomega, Necrolipe, and Brian/bpijr.  As for my own information, here's a few new details. -It's actually being developed internally. This is the first time Nintendo has taken the reigns of development since 1997's Star Fox 64 . -It apparently is a sequel to a previous Star Fox game. Not a reboot.  -Online multiplayer w...

  2024 is here, and after an insanely long six years of waiting, I'm now hearing that the next 3D Mario, set to launch with Nintendo's brand spankin' new console, was finished over the holiday season. This is standard Nintendo practice, many of their big games are done well before release. As was said before, this is EPD Tokyo's first full attempt at an open world game, and the game is said to look " Absolutely jaw-dropping". I can confirm a few other new things as well: Donkey Kong will appear in the game in some form. I'm unsure if he's playable, a boss, or an extended cameo of some sort. Given how Mario and DK have appeared as a pair in pretty much everything as of late, which includes the movie, LEGO sets, a remake of Mario Vs. DK, and now in theme park promotions, it only makes sense to continue that trend.  Luigi, Peach, Captain Toad and Pauline will all appear as well, though I'm unsure what roles they'll play in the game.  The other, mu...